Black Legacy: Ascension
by AtticusMaximus
Summary: Antares Black is the eldest son of Orion and Walburga Black, elder brother to Sirius and Regulus. Follow him as he has to deal with the rising of a new Dark Lord, and the pressure that is being the heir to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black. Pureblood Politics. Marauder Era. OC/OC. Marriage Contracts. First Wizarding War.
1. Chapter 1

Antares is born on the 6th of October, 1958.

Sirius is born in Autumn, 1959

Regulus is Born in 1961

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Chapter 1

Orion Black slowly climbed the stairs of Number 12 Grimmauld Place, each step more reluctant than the last. He had recently finished a lengthy conversation with Jasper Greengrass, and it was now time to inform his eldest son of the outcome. As his feet carried him ever closer to his son's room, he became increasingly nervous. A feat that didn't occur very often.

He wasn't nervous about what his son would do per se, knowing full well that he had every right to organize the future of his heir, but he did worry about whether or not his son's opinion of him would diminish or not. He and Walburga had taught their son's everything it meant to be a pureblood of their status, so his news wouldn't be totally unexpected.

The summer was almost over, and soon his sons would leave the manor and return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, once again leaving the halls of his father's silence once more. Without the sound of his sons, or the many friends they bought a home, life would once again be bleak and boring, leaving him with only his wife in the hallowed halls of Grimmauld Place.

His palms sheened with sweat as he finally reached the top floor, his mind going over how and what he was going to say to his eldest son. His son would no doubt try and hide his feelings, as he had been taught to do so by his various relatives, but Orion knew that feelings such as anger or rage would only hurt their relationship in the long run.

Schooling his own expression into a mask of indifference, he took a step forward and rapped hardly on the wooden door that played host to a sign reading A.O.B.

"Enter" came the muffled reply.

Turning the doorknob Orion opened the door and took a step forward, his grey eyes scanning the meticulously clean room before landing on that of his son, who happened to be lying on his bed, ankles crossed over one another as his eyes skimmed the pages of a thick dusty tome.

Seeing as his son was immersed in his book, Orion's eyes wandered around the room, noting how very different it was to that of his other two sons. Unlike Sirius's, and to a lesser degree Regulus', whose rooms where untidy at the best of times, his eldest son's was neat and spotless. The room was one of the bigger ones; was furnished with a large king-sized bed (which was covered by a green and black duvet), a wooden desk with various scrolls of parchment, various wooden wardrobes (filled with the finest robes money could buy), posters of scantily clad witches (which he shot a glare at when it winked provocatively at him) and a large overstuffed bookshelf that covered the entire left side of the room.

Hearing the clearing of a throat, Orion turned his attention from the lurid pictures to that of the questioning gaze of his eldest son, who had put down his book and was now sitting on the edge of his bed. Turning his attention to his son, he couldn't help but let a small grin grace his features as he thought about how lucky both he and his wife where to have such handsome sons.

His eldest son was well built, stood at around 5 ft. 9 and had the natural good looks of a member of the Black family. He had an aristocratic face (high cheekbones and a strong jawline), slightly curly sleek black hair that fell to his shoulders, with a straight nose and piercing gray eyes. In other words, he was nearly an exact duplicate of himself. Mentally shaking his head, he turned his attention back towards his son, who by now was quiet, curious of his father's sudden appearance in his bedroom.

"There are some matters that I must discuss with you Antares" said Orion, his voice lacking its usual severity.

"Is something wrong, Father?" asked Antares, his eyes taking on a concerned look.

Knowing that the best way to tell his son the news was to just get to the point and to not beat around the bush and so Orion did just that.

"You're Mother and I have just concluded negotiations with Lord Greengrass. You are to marry his eldest daughter Helena before your 20th birthday."

If Antares was expecting something, this definitely wasn't it. His expression quickly lost its concerned expression, instead his features morphed into a mask of indifference, but Orion new his son better than perhaps anyone else, and he knew that underneath that handsome face that was so similar to his own, dark and angry thoughts where brewing.

Antares turned away from his father, and walked towards his desk, his mask slipping from his face as he did so. It was best not to show his father the hurt and anger that was etched upon his features, such weakness wasn't tolerated in the House of Black.

Antares knew that a marriage contract was very common among pureblood families such as his, and he knew that it was only a matter of time before he himself was entered into one, yet he would have at least thought that his parents would consult him on the matter first. Apparently he had been mistaken.

He knew that as the Heir to his family, it was his duty to do as his father commanded and continue on the family name, but knowing that he would never be able to be with the person he wanted, made him resent half-bloods and muggleborns alike, for at least they were able to choose who they were to marry.

It didn't matter to his father or to anyone else that he had feelings for a certain someone back at Hogwarts, even if he knew that their relationship was as unlikely as Snape failing at potions. He himself questioned his own feelings for her at times, wondering where his feelings had come from given his upbringing. At least his new fiancée was positively gorgeous, merlin forbid he be contracted to marry a Parkinson, or worse a Bulstrode. Antares shuddered at the thought.

Knowing there was no use in voicing his displeasure, his father wouldn't hold for such nonsense anyway, he buried his feelings deep within his memory, using Occlumency to put them out of his mind until he could deal with them when he didn't have company.

"The Terms?" asked Antares after several minutes, his back still facing his father.

Orion sighed in relief. His son it seemed, had chosen to act in a manner befitting the Scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, a good thing considering an angry Antares was something he didn't want to cross. His son was scary powerful at the best of times.

"As I said previously, you are to marry your betrothed before your 20th Birthday. You are to provide her with at least one son before your 35th birthday. You are to share nobodies bed but hers, the same applies to her, and finally to be divorced from one another is to forfeit your magic, and by extension your life." answered Orion in a grave yet powerful voice.

Antares nodded slightly in resignation. The terms where the standard affair for a Marriage Contract. At least he didn't have to have a child until he was 35; he was never very fond of children. There was still something he wanted to know, and that was how much the bride price and dowry was.

"All acceptable" replied Antares, "and the exchange? Just how much is my happiness worth?"

Orion's shoulders tensed, although his son hadn't said anything against the contract outright, he could still hear slight resentment in his tone. No matter what anyone told you about Orion Black, whether it be that he was a cruel and prejudice man or that he was dark wizard, there was no deny the fact that he cared for the happiness and wellbeing of his sons, and to see one of his sons so obviously angry with him, was truly heartbreaking. Nevertheless, he answered his son's question.

"Seeing as they are getting the better end of the deal, being married into the Black Family that is, the dowry from House Greengrass to House Black is 320 square miles of land in the North York Moors (valued at $3.2 million galleons) and a lump sum of $1,350,000 galleons. The bride price from House Black to House Greengrass is significantly less, with only a lump sum of $2,000,000 galleons and a villa in Spain." declared Orion.

Antares eyes grew calculating as he went over what his father had just told him. Whilst the Blacks had given them more galleons, House Greengrass had given a very large, very valuable piece of property in the Moors. Such a piece of land had unending possibilities.

"I know that this is a lot to take in Antares. I too was once in the same position that you are in now, and I know that I myself didn't handle it half as well as you appear to be. I just wanted you to know that I and your mother did what we believe to be the best for your future, and the future of our House. I hope in time you are able to forgive us." Said Orion as he turned to leave.

But as he was nearing the door, Antares spoke, and for a second Orion thought all had been forgiven.

"Seeing as I am the one getting married, I believe it only fair that the dowry from House Greengrass is deposited into my vault, wouldn't you agree Father?"

Orion only smirked as he pulled a small gold key from out of his breast pocket, placing it gently on the desk beside him. Having known something of this was likely to occur (he knew the kind of person his son was), he had already flooed Gringotts and transferred the items into his son's name. It wasn't like the Black Family Vault needed the Galleons anyway.

"It's already been taken care of"

Knowing his eldest son had a lot on his mind; he turned and left his son to his thoughts, closing the door quietly behind him, he made his way to the sitting room to inform his wife of the outcome, a small smile on his lips and a spring in his step. The meeting had gone much better than he thought possible, now if only Sirius and Regulus could act as mature as Antares, than his life would be so much easier.


	2. Chapter 2

Antares didn't leave his room for the rest of the holidays. He refused to go down for dinner, and instead had the House Elf's bring it directly to him, and even went as far as to put a ward on his door to prevent anyone from entering. Even if his father could remove the war, he didn't. Something that Antares was grateful for.

After his father had left, the gravity of the situation had hit him like a ton of bricks, his muscular frame crumbling to the ground in a show of rare vulnerability. He laid like that for what seemed like forever, letting his mind go over various possibilities about his future. What if his future wife didn't like him? Or what if he didn't like her? What if their relationship was as bad and as loveless as his parents? But most of all, he thought of a 5th year beauty that would never know of his feelings for her.

Before long the summer holidays where coming to a close, and it was only on the last day before returning to Hogwarts that he remembered that he still hadn't been to Diagon Alley to retrieve his 6th Year reading material, and it was with great reluctance that he found himself leaving the sanctity of his bedroom, and down into the hustle and bustle that was the dining room of Number 12 Grimmauld Place.

His father was hidden behind the daily prophet, snide remarks about the ministry leaving his lips every so often, whilst his mother was reading the latest edition of Witch Weekly.

Seeing as they hadn't acknowledged his presence, he went to clear his throat. But just as he was about to his mother looked up from her magazine.

"Decided to finally grace us with your presence did you" she sneered, an expression that fit oddly well on her beautiful face.

This was how his mother always acted; she was never nice to any of her children, Sirius especially. Years of this treatment from his mother had made him immune to its effect, and so he simply nodded. His father folded his paper and shot a warning glare at his wife, who rolled her eyes and went back to her reading.

"Is there something you wanted Antares" asked Orion.

"I have to go to Diagon Alley and pickup my school supplies. I'll be home before dark." replied Antares, his face not revealing the anger and resentment that was bubbling under the surface. It was times like these that he appreciated his Grandfather for teaching him Occlumency.

His father nodded before pulling several envelopes from his pocket, each sealed with the Black Family crest.

"Drop these off at Gringott's whilst you're their" said his father.

Antares picked them off the table and placed them in his robe pocket before leaving his parents to their frivolous live and into the main lounge, where his brother Regulus happened to be reading one of his schoolbooks on the sofa.

"Antares!" exclaimed Regulus, jumping out of his seat with a grin plastered on his face. It had been a whole week since he had seen his elder brother, quiet a long time if he did say so himself

"Control yourself Regulus" snapped Antares "You are a member of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, not some common mudblood Hufflepuff. Act in a way that befits someone of your station."

Regulus rubbed the back of his head sheepishly as he straightened his ruffled robes and stood with his head held high, his grin faded into a cool smirk. Even Antares was surprised at how quickly his youngest brother could replace his Slytherin mask.

"I heard about the Contract" whispered Regulus, his eyes downcast. Regulus knew the topic would be a sore point for his brother, finding out that you were to be married to someone you hardly knew would make anyone quick to anger. He was just glad it wasn't he who had a Marriage Contract.

"Bet you're relieved it isn't you" said Antares as he stepped around his brother and picked up the jar of Floo Powder.

Regulus look up guility, wondering how his brother had known that was what he was thinking. His thought leaving him when he realized that Antares was planning on going somewhere.

"Where are you off to Ares" he asked, using his brother's childhood nickname.

Antares didn't respond. Instead he took a generous handful of Floo Powder, placing the jar on the mantelpiece, before stepping into the families' grate.

"Diagon Alley" muttered Antares.

In a burst of green flames Antares was whisked away from Grimmauld Place, leaving the questioning face of his brother far behind him.

Several Minutes went by as his body twisted and turned within the Floo Network, his eyes catching glances of other peoples grates as he travelled to his destination, The Leaky Cauldron. Suddenly his body came to a stop, and before he could even blink he was being shot out of the Cauldron's grate, where he landed with the utmost grace. Dusting a non-existent speck of dust from his robes, Antares strode straight past the various gawking witches and wizard, and out into the courtyard that acted as a gateway to Diagon Alley.

Antares pulled out his wand from his robe pocket (Blackthorn, 12 inches with a dragon heartstring core) before stepping forward and touching the red bricks of the wall in a certain order, the wall quickly transforming itself into an archway.

Even though he had seen Diagon Alley a thousand times, Antares could help the small smile that made its way onto his face as his eyes took in the magical site. His smile quickly vanished however, when he spotted an obviously muggle family staring and pointing at everything in sight, expressions of wonder plasted on their faces. His eyes turned cold as he glared towards them, for it was people like they who made his, and every other purebloods, world so diluted. They, who came into his world and tried to force their mudblood views upon his people, trying to get things changed so that the Wizarding world resembled that of their precious muggle world, oh how he hated them.

28 Families. That was all that was left of the once great wizard Britain. 28 Families who had remained completely pure. 28 Families whose lines had not been dilute by that of the mudblood filth that was trying to invade his world. His family was one of those 28, and he would do anything in his power to make it to remain so. These families, the so-called Sacred Twenty-Eight, were but a fraction of what was once the pureblood capital of the world. How it saddened him to see his world reduced to such a state.

He had heard whispers. Whispers of a man who called himself Voldemort. He had heard that this so called "Voldemort", was gathering himself follows, followers that he would use to flip the Wizarding World on its head, purifying the world of mudbloods and muggles alike.

Antares knew that the man was powerful; nobody would follow him if he wasn't, but he also knew that to destroy an entire race was not the right way to approach things. Hadn't Grindelwald and his muggle puppet taught them anything? Antares knew that it was thanks to Grindelwald's revolutionary war that many pureblood families had been wiped out, and he shuddered to think what would happen to the remaining pureblood families if another such war was to take place.

He knew it was but a manner of time before this so called Voldemort started to recruit from within the Pureblood families, promising the downfall of the mudbloods would gather him a lot of support. If it came to it, Antares was willing to oppose this "Voldemort" person, if only to keep his family, and that of every other pureblood, safe.

Putting these thoughts to the back of his mind, he continued on into the bustling streets of Diagon Alley. As he made his way towards Gringotts, his expensive robes billowing behind him, he caught several Hogwarts witches giggling as he past. His good looks and family wealth where handy tools to get into any witches knickers, and Antares had used both to do so on numerous occasions. Smirking at them, which only seemed to send them into more fits of hysterics, he finally found himself standing outside the imposing figure that was Gringotts: Wizarding Bank.

Climbing the marble stairs, Antares nodded to the guards, each of who nodded in turn, before making his way into the bank. Passing several long lines, Antares walked straight to the back of the brightly lit hall where he found the desk of the manager of the Black Family accounts. A huge goblin sat behind the desk, his pointed fingers clutching a magnifying glass and an emerald the size of Antares fist.

"Arok" greeted Antares.

"Scion Black, what may I do for you" returned Arok.

"My father wanted me to give you this" said Antares as he handed over the letters his father had given him. "And I need to retrieve some gold from my Vault"

Arok nodded, before signaling another goblin to escort Antares to his vault.

Antares followed the unnamed goblin to the carts, and after a very long cart ride deep underground, they finally arrived at his vault.

"Vault 655, Personal Vault of one Antares Orion Black" wheezed the goblin as he stepped out of the cart, Antares following suit.

Taking the key from his pocket, Antares placed it in the tiny key hole before turning it anti-clockwise. The large stone door creaked upon slowly to reveal huge room filled with piles upon piles of neatly stacked galleons. So this was what One and a half million galleons look liked, thought Antares. Pulling out his expanded money pouch, he began shoving piles of gold into the sack, only stopping when a sizeable chuck had been removed from the pile he had decided to take from.

"Balance?" asked Antares of the goblin.

"One million four hundred and 83 thousand galleons, 304 sickles, 93 knuts" grunted the goblin.

Nodding happily, Antares closed the vault door and got back into the cart. The ride back to the surface was once again filled with silence, and it wasn't long before he was walking out of Gringotts with a large stack of gold in his pocket that was just waiting to be spent.

Deciding to get his textbooks first, Antares made his way towards Flourish &amp; Blots, where he preceded to buy his sixth year books, as well as a couple books on warding and the properties of Magic. Shrinking his purchases with a tap of his wand, he slowly made his way towards Madam Malkins Robes for all Occasions.

"ah, Scion Black, what a pleasure it is. Here to collect your School Robes I take it" asked the smiling Madam Malkin, a squat witch dressed all in mauve and who had blue eyes and completely white hair.

"Correct, Madam" replied Antares, the smile on his face not reaching his eyes.

"Just the school robes today?" she asked him as she began taking his measurements, her measuring tape zooming around his body as she took jotted down the numbers on a scrap of parchment.

Antares thought it over. He was running out of clothes that fit properly, his recent growth spurt having made most of his robes two inches to short. His mother had taught him at a young age that what one wore was a major statement about their character, and that in order to be the acknowledged as the best, one most always look the best.

"I'll also need a new dress robe, black with a silver trimming and the Black Family crest on the breast pocket, as well as another three casual robes, two in dark blue and another in dark grey, these two should have my family crest. All of which shall be made with the finest Acromantula silk that you possess. I am also in need of several new shirts and slacks, all black in colour. That should do it for now." Listed off Antares, pausing now and then to think of what he wanted.

Madam Malkin jotted down each item as he rattled them off, tallying the cost of each item as she did so. Based on the number of items that her customer was wanting, plus the use of her finest Acromantula silk, she was about to make a hefty sale.

"The total comes to 234 galleons and 8 sickles, and everything shall be ready for you in about an hour"

"Very well" replied Antares, pulling the required amount out of his money pouch and placing it in neatly stacked rows upon the counter.

"I shall return within the hour" Antares said over his shoulder as he exited the shop.

'What to do' thought Antares as he looked up and down the Alley, wondering which store he needed to visit next. His eyes skipped over Quality Quidditch Supplies (he had no time for such a frivolous sport), and that of Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour (one didn't get his kind of figure by eating such junk), before his eyes landed on something of interest.

Nestled between the Magical Menagerie and Obscurus Books, was a small store called Wedding Supplies and Gifts, so average and drab looking was the storefront, that Antares couldn't recall a time when he had ever noticed the dingy little shop.

His tutors, not to mention his parents, had taught him everything that a Pureblood heir needed to know and one of those things happened to be a little old tradition called Courting. Although he would of course honor the tradition, he by no means was looking forward to it.

Courting had been around since medieval times. It had once been used as a way to pick the perfect suitor for women to marry, but as he was already contracted to marry Helena it was more of formality than anything else. The courting process lasted anywhere between one and two months, and in that time he was supposed to do a variety of things in order to show his betrothed that he was both a capable wizard and devoted to the relationship. The first step of courting was to for him send a letter and a personal gift to his betrothed every three day as it was considered inappropriate for a man to speak to his betrothed for the entirety of the first month. Seeing as he needed to buy several personal gifts for Helena, Antares took his noticing of the store as a sign that he should probably buy her some gifts whilst he had the chance. Wasting no time whatsoever, Antares strode across the cobblestone street and into the quaint little store, his robes billowing dramatically behind him all the while.

As his eyes readjusted to the dim lighting, he looked around the shop and was quiet surprised at what he saw. Unlike the outside, the inside was neat and sparkling clean, shelves and shelves stacked high with a large assortment of gifts, both magical and mundane in nature.

"Great, just great" muttered Antares, knowing it was going to take him forever to find the perfect gifts for Helena. Stepping forward Antares introduced himself to the owner, a tall middle aged witch, and so began the longest hour of his entire life.

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Please Read and Review. Boring, Interesting! Let me know.

Criticisms? Complaints? Tell me.

Any tips or things you think I should know/do. Leave it in the Review.

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In case people are wondering, Helena Greengrass is the second child of Jasper Greengrass, she has an older brother who has already left Hogwarts, he is the father of Daphne and Astoria Greengrass.


	3. Chapter 3

September the 1st dawned bright and early, and to say that Grimmauld Place was unusually busy would be putting it mildly. What was usually a place of silence and cold austerity was uncharacteristically filled with the sounds of heavy footfalls and various curse words as the youngest members of the Black Family rushed from room to room in a last effort to collect the school supplies they had happened to misplace over the summer holidays.

Antares however, was nowhere to be seen. Instead he was sitting in his room, dressed in his finest robes whilst seated at his desk, a phoenix feather quill in one hand and a piece of toast in the other. Ever since he had been to Gringotts, and seen the vast wealth that he had recently acquired, he had taken a vested interest in personally handling his finances. Currently he was going through various business portfolios in order to look for potential investments, a task that was as boring as it sounded. Several minutes passed, his quill making several scratches on the parchment as he took another bite of his toast and sipped on his green tea.

Hearing footsteps on the stairwell, Antares picked up his wand and cast a quick _Tempus_ spell, his eyes widening slightly when he noticed that it was already time to head to the station. Getting up from his chair, he waved his wand over his desk, nonverbally casting two banishing charms (one to send his dishes to the sink, and the other sending his documents to his trunk). He was halfway through shrinking his trunk when somebody knocked on his door. Judging by the sound of it, his father was on the other side.

"Enter"

He was correct of course, as he knew he would be. His father stood before him, his tall frame draped in expensive black robes, the black crest proudly displayed on his left breast.

"It's time to leave. Have you got everything?" he asked.

"Just about" replied Antares, before stuffing both his shrunken trunk and his wand into the innermost pocket of his robe.

"Ready" he said.

"I'd like a word before you leave, if that's okay?" asked his father, who now that Antares though about it was looking a little stressed, the bags under his eyes being one of several signs.

"Of course" answered Antares.

"I know that – things – haven't been the same between us Antares. Ever since I informed you of your marriage contract you have barely left your room, and I hardly doubt it's because you need the extra study. Is there anything you need to discuss with me, anything at all?" asked Orion, his dark eyes taking on a concerned look as they gazed into those of his sons.

Antares looked towards his father as he debated on whether or not he should reveal his true feelings in regards to the marriage contract between Helena Greengrass and himself. The relationship between he and his father had always been a strange one, his father had always been a strict and commanding parent, expecting nothing but the best from all of his children. Yet his father had always been stricter on him than on that of his brothers. Despite this, his father had always been there to help him when he needed it the most, especially when it concerned matters of the heart.

"As a matter of fact, there is" replied Antares as he turned around and sat down on the edge of his bed, his father taking a seat before him on the nearby desk chair.

Not knowing where to start, Antares decided to skip all of his other concerns (especially the one that concerned his love for someone he wasn't supposed to) and focused on the one thing that was truly troubling him.

"I am concerned that my betrothed and I will not be happy together. That we shall be doomed spend the rest of our lives together in a relationship that is comprised of anger and resentment." Said Antares, his voice filled with dread, his slender finger fiddling with

If Orion was surprised at his son's troubled view of his future, he didn't show it. Instead, he leaned forward and grasped his son's hands between his own and looked directly into his son's eyes, eyes that mirrored the exact same expression he had worn twenty years ago.

"Listen to me Antares Orion Black" whispered Orion, his voice quiet yet stern. "For neigh on two millennia our family has remain untainted by those of lesser blood. It is the pureness of our blood that makes the family magic remains some of the strongest in the entire world. It is because of marriage contracts like yours that we are able to make sure that our heir finds a suitable mate and that our lines remain pure. Not all marriages are happy ones, that I can agree with. Although you and Miss Greengrass may have a marriage such as you described, there is no telling for sure what your future together may hold. Who knows, you both might discover that you have more in common with each other than you previously thought."

"But what if we don't have anything in common, what if we never fall in love?" interrupted Antares.

"Then make her fall in love with you, use that big brain of yours to show her that you are everything she desires in man. Make her fall in love with you and you may just find yourself falling in love her. Heed my advice Antares, if only my father had given the advice I have just shared with you, then maybe my marriage would be as happy as yours hopefully is."

Antares nodded his head as his father spoke. He wasn't totally convinced that his father's advice would work, but he would give it a try nonetheless, better he try it and fail than regret not trying it at all.

"I'll do all that I can father, you can make sure of that" replied Antares.

"Excellent" smiled Orion, before getting to his feet.

"Now come on, your brothers are waiting for us in the living room".

**_30 minute Later – Platform Nine and Three Quarters, London, England_**

Antares and Regulus stood side by side, their backs straight and their heads held high as they waited for the Hogwarts Express to depart. They weren't alone of course. Platform Nine and Three Quarters was packed with Hogwarts students (and their families), all eagerly waiting for the train to depart and for the school year to begin.

Antares looked around the platform in sheer disgust, his keen eyesight quickly landing on several mudbloods and their filthy parents. Oh how much easier it would be if he could just take a portkey to Hogsmeade, at least then he wouldn't have to be seen in the same vicinity as the muggle scum that currently stood not 12 feet away from him.

Checking his watch for the fifth time that day, Antares was pleased to learn that the train would be leaving in 15 minutes.

"You may as well go and find your friends now, the training will be leaving soon enough" Antares said to his brother.

"Finally! Ares" replied Regulus, "I don't know why you didn't just let me leave when Sirius went off to find Potter"

"You know exactly why I didn't let you leave. It is my job to look after you, and a lecture from Mother and Father is the last thing I need right now. Now go, I don't doubt your friends are looking for you"

But as the last words left his lips Regulus was already on the move, his small build weaving through the throng of people as he rushed to meet up with his friends.

Shaking his head in amusement, Antares followed his brother's footsteps and made his way onto the train.

A cacophony of noise assaulted his ears as he entered the carriage, the small space effectively amplifying the sound of the room. Antares glanced down the corridor, and mentality groaned as he seen just how many people where jam packed into the hallway. At this rate, it was going to take him forever to get his compartment.

Antares smirked evilly as he came up with a quick solution to his problem. Drawing his wand from his robes, he subtlety aimed it straight down the corridor of the train. With the required spell in mind, Antares silently waved his wand from side to side.

Before his very eyes the compartment doors on either side of the carriage opened with a BANG!, and everyone who had previously been occupying the hall were forcefully pushed into the compartments, where the doors then preceded to lock them in (in order to prevent retaliation from Antares' peers).

Smiling slightly himself, Antares walked through the now empty corridor (past his disgruntled classmates), until he reached the very last compartment, the only compartment that happened to be empty.

Opening the door, Antares entered the small brightly lit room, and promptly sat down on the left-hand side, right next to the window. He was in the process of tucking his wand back into his robe when he remembered that there was around two dozen students trapped in various compartments against their will, which he promptly reversed with the flick of his wrist.

Antares didn't have to wait long as before he knew it the trains horn signaled that it was about to depart, and it was moments later that he began to feel the train start to move. Moments went by and soon enough the train was going fast enough that entire fields where passing by the window in a blur.

It wasn't long before Antares had to pull his Arithmancy book out of his trunk in order to stave of his impending boredom, but even that couldn't take his mind away from the fact that he would be meeting his future wife in naught but a month.

One would think that he would choose to share a compartment with his friends, and normally he would. In previous years he had used the annual train ride to Hogwarts as a way to relax and enjoy the company of his close friends, and also to fool around with some of the less proper girls who had shared his bed on more than one occasion. But this year, he had no time for such idle chit-chat and tomfoolery. He had various things on his mind that prevented him from relaxing with friends and making out with pretty girls in the train's lavatory. Marriage, Helena Greengrass and Lily Evans where the most frequent of his thoughts.

If he was being completely honest with himself, Antares was still deeply upset over the fact that the rest of his life had already been planned for him. Sure, he had expected to be married in the near future, but the fact that he wasn't able to choose his own wife was something that deeply upset him. The Black Family had of course used marriage contracts for time beyond reckoning, and he should have known that the same rule would apply to him. Yet he had though that society was modern enough, and that his family loved and respected him enough, for him to at least pick who his future partner was.

Antares had plans for his future. Plans that would see him, and his family, raised to such a legendary status that witches and wizards for a thousand generations would remember the name of Antares Black. He still hadn't decided on whether or not him being married had hastened or halted his plans, but he guessed that all would be revealed in due time.

Turning to the window where the green fields where ever present and a light rain had begun to fall, Antares couldn't help but smirk as he envisioned his plans for the future of the Black family.

"And what a glorious future it shall be" whispered Antares.


	4. Chapter 4

"KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!"

Antares slowly opened one eye and peeked a look towards the compartment door, not really in the mood to entertain any of his friends at this particular time. But seeing a mane of fiery red hair attached to one very fine figure made him reevaluate his previous thoughts of privacy.

Getting out of his chair, Antares subtly smoothed down the corners of his already immaculate robes before unlocking the door, revealing the beautiful and angelic face of Lily Evans.

She wasn't a particular tall women, standing at around half a head shorter than himself, yet her frame was definitely sexier than his own, at least in his opinion anyway. He had never seen her in anything other than he school robes, and by no means was he able to accurately assess her womanly figure, but from what he was able to see she definitely had a gorgeous body. Her face on the other hand, was one of the most beautiful he had ever seen. She had creamy alabaster skin, shoulder-length slightly curly red hair, cute pink lips, rosy cheeks, and the most captivating green eyes he had ever laid eyes on. All in all, she was one beautiful woman.

"Evans?" questioned Antares, his trademark smirk ever present on his handsome face.

"Antares" Lily replied coolly, her lips thin in slight disapproval of his use of her last name.

"So, what can I do you for, Evans? I haven't got all day you know" asked Antares.

One would wonder why he was acting in such a manner, especially to someone who was as beautiful as Lily Evans. Believe it or not, there was a valid reason – at least valid in his eyes – as to why he was acting liking such an ass, and it had everything to do with his upbringing.

When one belonged to an illustrious family such as his, one was taught to preserve one's image – as well as the families – at all costs. Since first year he had preserved the image that he was a smart, sophisticated and mysterious gentleman who cared little for anyone outside his family and who wasn't in the habit of being particularly kind to his fellow students (especially those of the mudblood variety). Yet in reality he was an ambitious, unmerciful, cold-hearted blood purist who was also suave, kindhearted and charismatic. He was aware that such a personality wasn't normal. But since when had his family ever been normal.

His image was the reason he was being such an ass. He was being an ass because it was expected of him to be an ass, doing anything less would ruin the image that he so masterfully created. Whilst being an ass to Lily wasn't something he enjoyed (and he did enjoy being an ass to certain people), it wasn't like he was going to destroy years of work for any girl, not even for a fine piece of ass like Lily Evans.

"Nice to see you too, Antares" replied Lily sarcastically, not at all bothered by the eldest Black's dismissive attitude.

"I mean it Evans" said Antares "I'm not in the mood to deal with any prefect related duties at the moment. Make one of the younger years handle it."

"It's not about prefect duties, it's about something else" proclaimed Lily, taking a seat opposite him.

"And what can I, a lowly Slytherin, not including a Black, do for the Gryffindor golden girl" sneered Antares, his mask once again in full effect.

"It's important, Antares" said Lily quietly, crossing her arms and sitting her back in her seat, clearly uncomfortable with the situation she was coming to Antares for.

Antares expression changed from sneer to mildly curious in the blink of an eye. A stressed out Evans was something he had never seen. Maybe whatever Lily had to discuss with him was important after all.

"I know that we haven't spoken very often" said Lily, her voice low and her eyes downcast. "You being a Sixth year and a Slytherin, and me being a Fifth year and Gryffindor. And I know that you have no reason what-so ever in agreeing to my request, god knows why I'm asking even asking you of all people. But I was wandering … I was wandering if you'd be able to maybe … tutor me in Arithmancy and Ancient Runes?" Her voice becoming lower and lower the more she spoke.

Antares couldn't believe his ears. Sitting before him was the one person in the world he least expected to ever ask him for something, especially something as mundane as Arithmancy and Ancient Runes.

"And why would you, Lily Evans, self-proclaimed 'brightest witch of her age', need the help of little old me" remarked Antares, eyes alight with curiosity whilst he grinned impishly at her.

Lily ducked her head and blushed in embarrassment. Not only was she embarrassed that she needed help with her schoolwork, she was also embarrassed by the fact that the hottest boy in school was actually conversing with her, and in a civilized manner at that.

Don't get her wrong, she may be the teacher's pet and the Gryffindor golden girl, but that didn't negate the fact that she like boys just as much the next girl. The advances from the boys in her year didn't go unnoticed, how could they with that idiot Potter trying to woo her at every opportunity he got. Yet she wasn't interested in Potter. It wasn't that he wasn't handsome, it was more to do with the fact that he was about as mature as her 2 year old nephew.

"You know as well as I Antares that Arithmancy and Ancient Runes at a Fifth Year level is exceedingly difficult, more so for someone not raised in the wizarding world. It isn't totally unbelievable that I'm falling behind in a couple of classes. Please Antares, you're the only person I know that's smart enough, and hopefully willing enough, to teach me" Lily asked the Black heir pleadingly.

"And why should I, Evans? What is it to me if you fail Arithmancy and Ancient Runes? Last time I checked I didn't owe you or anyone else any favors" asked Antares, folding his arms over his chest and sitting his back against the seat.

Lily wasn't surprised by Antares' unsympathetic attitude, it wasn't like she expected him to do what she wanted out of the kindness of his heart. Purebloods (Black's especially) weren't known for their contribution to those in need, especially if they received nothing that could benefit them in return.

She knew that if she could offer Antares something of value that he might at least consider helping her with her studies. Only problem was, what do you get for someone who could clearly afford whatever they wanted?

"You could do it out of the kindness of your art" she jokingly asked him, a small smile on her lips.

"Unlikely" snorted Antares "have another go".

"You've already got enough gold, so I doubt you want that. Oh I know, I could set you up a date with Katherine Atkins" Said Lily brightly, believing she had found the perfect way to pay for her tutoring lesson.

"Pass" said Antares, a bored look on his face.

Lily blinked in shock. Antares hadn't even blinked at her proposal to set him up with Katherine Atkins, something she was positive was going to work. Katherine Atkins was the hottest girl in Gryffindor. She also happened to be a pureblood that came from a very old family. Every boy that had ever asked her out had been her rejected, so to say that she was surprised that someone with Antares reputation as a womanizer was putting it mildly.

"What do you want from me then?" she asked.

Antares thought about it for a moment. There offer of her setting him up with Katherine Atkins wasn't at all appealing, he wasn't interested in anyone other than Lily, plus the fact that he was contracted to be married really put a damper on one's sex life. There really wasn't anything that Lily could offer him, monetarily wise at least. If his father had taught him anything, it was that gold was the least valuable currency in existence.

Several minutes passed as Antares though about what he could extract from Lily in return for his services.

"Here's the deal" Antares told her. "I'll tutor you in Ancient Runes on Monday and Ancient Runes on Wednesdays, the time and place will vary from week to week. If anybody asks why I'm tutoring you, you tell them that teachers are forcing me to, the last thing I need is the entire school population thinking I'm willing to help somebody in need, I do have a reputation to protect after all. In return for me tutoring you, you will cover my prefect duties whenever asked, as well as owing me two favors (non-sexual and non-dangerous in nature) that you must complete without question or complaint."

"Do you agree with said terms?" he asked her, holding out his hand for her to shake whilst looking her directly in the eyes.

Seeing as the favors would be non-sexual and non-dangerous, Lily held out her hand – so small and delicate compared to his own – and shook it, her heart skipping a beat when she felt the warm thrum of magic join their hands in a binding magical contract that would prove fatal to whomever didn't uphold their end of the deal.

"If that's everything Evans, I'd really like to get back to my nap that you so rudely interrupted" said Antares snidely, his arrogant persona slipping right back into place.

Lily just smiled as she stood up and made to leave, turning back towards Antares at the last second.

"Thanks Antares" she said earnestly. "Not many people in your position would agree to tutor a fifth year, especially with NEWTs next year and all. I know that everyone says you're an arrogant blood purist with no care for anyone other than yourself, but I don't believe them." Here she looked him directly in the eye and gave him a sad smile. "I believe that deep down inside yourself ... that theirs a sensitive and caring guy who hides behind a mask because it is expect of him to do so. I hope that in time that you can learn to trust me enough to show me the real you."

And with that parting statement she slid open the door and made her way back to her compartment, leaving a very confused Antares in her wake.

"If only you knew her truly wrong you are Lily. If only you knew" he whispered to himself, turning his head to look out the window once again.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 – Arrival at Hogwarts

The rest of the train ride to Hogwarts proved uneventful for Antares.

The old lady with the food trolley made an appearance, and he was forced to do his prefect rounds. But beside these two things everything went by as per usual.

It was several hours later, when the sky had darkened and the rain had begun to fall, that the Hogwarts express finally arrived at its destination. It was a good thing too because Antares was positively starving due to refusing to buy anything off of the food trolley because it consisted of nothing but junk food.

Antares hardly paid any attention to what he was doing as he manoeuvred his way off the train and towards the carriages that would take him and the other students to the gates of Hogwarts. He stopped for a moment outside of his carriage in order to pat the thestral that pulled it, grinning slightly when it playfully nipped at his fingers.

Usually he would share a carriage with his friends, but just like the train ride down he was in for another silent journey with naught but his thoughts to occupy his time.

As he listened to the soft pitter-patter of the falling rain, he couldn't help but think back to his earlier conversation with Lily.

Although he had acted upset that he had to tutor someone, in actual fact he was quiet glad that he would get to spend some alone time with the pretty redhead.

He didn't know why, but ever since he had noticed her in his fourth year (her third) he had had an inconceivable amount of affection for her. Something that not only shocked him, but also frightened him beyond belief.

He was on his way to Transfiguration one morning, his thought occupied by the amazing night he had spent with a certain lady, when he ran headfirst into a 13 year old Lily Evans. He remembered looking up to make a snide remark at the foolish person who had dared get in his way. Yet when he saw who it was he couldn't seem to take his eyes off of her and his voice seem to be die in his throat.

It wasn't that she was breathtakingly beautiful, because she was. He had seen plenty of women as beautiful as Lily, yet the difference was that they didn't have the same effect that she was having on him. Nor was it how smart, generous and kind-hearted she was. It was that she possessed a quality that he couldn't quiet put his finger on.

Whatever it was, it made him feel content and happy inside, as if all his worries and feelings were inferior to her. It was a feeling that had never been replicated when in the presence of someone else.

Yet although he had loved this new and wonderful feeling, a feeling that let him simply relax and forget about his worries for once in his life, he had no choice but to bury it within the deep recesses of his mind, implementing the rare art of Occlumency in order to do so.

It wasn't that the feeling wasn't a welcome one, because it was, it was more to do with the person who was causing the feelings to begin with.

The fact that a muggleborn – he refused to call Lily a Mudblood – was the object of his desires wasn't something to be proud about. He was a pureblood from an old and prestigious family, and she was a muggleborn. Whether he liked it or not, there was nothing in the future for him and Lily.

So instead of dwelling on what could never be, he had decided to lock his feelings away. As the age old proverb said; it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live. And that was exactly what him and Lily being together was, nothing more and nothing less than a dream that could never come to pass.

His carriage came to a stop not ten minutes later. The rain had picked up and was now hammering down upon the ground. 'Thank Merlin for protection charms' thought Antares as he excited his carriage and made his way across the Hogwarts grounds with his classmates.

The castle loomed mightily above them as the students made their way across the courtyard and into the entrance hall, the ancient wooden doors closing magically behind them.

The castle loomed over him as Antares followed the rest of his classmates across the courtyard and into the entrance hall, the ancient wooden doors closing magically behind them when the last student had crossed the threshold.

The entrance hall of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was a vast. The floor was made black and white marble and the walls were adorned with various tapestries. Portraits of important witches and wizards also covered the walls, their aged faces basically poking out of their frames in order to get a better look at the returning student.

Antares ignored the portraits as he and the rest of the student body were lead into the great hall, the students splitting into their respective houses as they passed through the door.

The Great Hall was aptly named. A thousand floating candles filled the room, reflecting brightly off of the golden platters that littered the tables below. Platters that would soon be filled with foods of various types.

As Antares was at the very back of the line of students, he found that his friends had already been seated by the time that he had entered the hall. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but he really was glad to see them.

As he made his way over to the Slytherin table, one of his best friends caught sight of him and gestured for Antares to join them.

"We were beginning to think that you weren't going to show" said the teen who had called him over, a good looking guy with curly brown hair and lightly tanned skin.

"Nott" replied Antares in response, nodding to the youth before shaking his hand.

"Avery. Flint." said Antares to the other two men seated at the table, grasping both of their hands in a firm handshake.

"Black" they nodded back almost in unison.

Turning around, Antares bowed to the last members of their ground, two breathtakingly beautiful women who were both smiling at him with their beautifully white straight teeth.

"Lady Parkinson. Lady Wilkes."

"Scion Black" they replied, bobbing their heads towards the Black Heir.

Calling his friends by their last names (and their titles) may seem strange and old fashioned to some, yet there was a good reason for the formality. Seeing as they were in public, and they all belonged to respectable pureblood families, it was up to them to present themselves with decorum and propriety. As such whenever they were introduced to fellow member of the elite, it was custom to introduce oneself using the persons last name or title.

Antares gave each of them a smile before taking a seat between the two of them.

To his right sat the black-haired beauty by the name of Sophia Wilkes. She had a lithe figure, wavy black hair that went to her shoulders, creamy white skin and beautiful brown eyes. Besides Nott, Sophia was perhaps his closest friend, having been so since he was very young. Like himself Sophia was also studious and intellectually gifted, and was (along with himself) one of the top students in the entire school.

To his left sat the enigmatic beauty that was Caroline Parkinson.

Like Sophia, Caroline was also strikingly beautiful. With black hair, blue eyes and a generous bust, the Parkinson heir had no problem in the dating department. Caroline's family was nearly as old as his own, belonging to the prestigious and exclusive organization that was the Sacred Twenty-Eight.

Across from Sophia and Caroline sat Jasper Avery and Tristan Flint. Jasper and Tristan where the complete opposite of each other despite being closer than brothers. Tristan had blonde hair, an attractive face and a large muscular frame. Jasper on the other hand had black hair, an average (but no unattractive) face a stick-thin body. Tristan was outgoing, confident and the brawn of their group, whereas Jasper was shy, quiet and intelligent. Ever since he had met them the two had been inseparable. Where one was the other wasn't far behind.

And lastly, sitting across from him was none other than Xavier Nott.

Xavier Nott had been his best friend since he was 6 years old. Their families' ran in the same social circles so whenever there was a social gathering the children were all forced to play together. Such occasions were the opportune time to make future alliances, at least that's what Antares had been told by his father. It was at one of these social gathering that he had first met Xavier Nott, and them being very similar they had quickly became very good friends.

To Say that Xavier and he were similar would be an understatement. Besides from the both of them being exceedingly handsome (he was completely secure in his sexuality that he had no problem calling his fellow man handsome), they were both smart, magically powerful, rich and revolutionists in the making. Xavier was the person that he confided in when he needed help with things of a sensitive nature. Xavier shared his opinion on the way things were meant to be, and would be his second-in-command when his future plans came into fruition. But Xavier was more than just a sounding board and future lieutenant. Xavier was his brother in all but blood.

"How was your summer Antares?" asked Caroline. "I had just finished telling the guys about my families' trip to Versailles before you joined us."

"Swimming, Studying, Family gatherings. A relatively quiet summer, all things considering" shrugged Antares nonchalantly, not mentioning anything about Helena Greengrass.

"How about you guys" asked Antares, glancing around the table at his friends. "What did you lot get up to whilst I was away."

"Well my family went to Spain for 2 months. The beaches there are absolutely fabulous" said Sophia.

"Milan" said Nott, not needing to deliberate further since they all knew Xavier had family in Italy.

"Avery? Flint?" asked Antares, looking towards the remaining members of the group.

"Better than Jasper's at least" said Tristan quietly, looking towards his friend.

Xavier, Sophia, Antares and Caroline looked toward Jasper with concern.

"Jasper?" asked Caroline quietly, grasping his from across the table.

Jasper withdrew his hand from hers and looking down at his empty plate, refusing to look at any of them.

"What is it Jasper?" asked Xavier. "You know you can tell ..."

But Xavier was interrupted by the clinking of metal upon metal. The entire hall turned their attention to the professors table, where the Deputy Headmistress was standing up with a goblet in one hand and a spoon in the other. It appeared as if they had been so wrapped up in catching up with each other that they had missed the sorting feast entirely.

"May I have your attention please" said McGonagall. "The Headmaster would like to say a few words".

Dumbledore got to his feet, his dark maroon robes with green stars clashing horribly with his long grey beard and sparkling blue eyes.

"To our new students, Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and to returning students, welcome back. I'm sure you're all just as famished as I am, so without further ado. Dig In!"

With a wave of his arms the once empty tables filled with an assortment of delicious food, the first years mouths dropping and their eyes nearly popping out of their head as they watched the food magically appear.

Antares piled chicken, salad and vegetables onto his plate, completely avoiding the calorie heavy food such as cheese, potato and bread.

The feast progressed in similar fashion to years past, with Antares and his friends catching up and making small-talk on the subjects of schoolwork, the local gossip and upcoming parties and gatherings for the upcoming year. What was different than previous years however was the fact that Tristan refused to speak to any of them about his problem and instead sat playing with his food for the entire night.

After the dessert dishes had been cleared away, the aged Headmaster once again stood up from his seat.

"Settle down everyone, settle down" he said to his students, the room becoming instantaneously quiet.

"I have few start of term notices to inform you of before you all trod off to bed. Firstly, to our new students, the Forbidden Forest is aptly named and is forbidden to all students. Secondly, our previous Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher was bitten by a werewolf, and as such is unable to return. We are however, fortunate enough to have found a replacement for Professor Braddock, please give a warm welcome to your new Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, Professor Nathaniel Graves."

As Dumbledore said his name, the newest addition to the Hogwarts staff stood up and gave the students a wave. Professor Graves was a mild-aged man with short brown hair and an oddly crooked nose, not unlike that of the Headmasters. He wasn't very tall, standing at about 5ft 5 and wore expensive looking dress robes of navy blue. The students clapped politely as their new DADA teacher stood forward, no sense of shock or wonder on their faces at the misfortune of their last professor, it was common knowledge that a curse was placed on the position.

"And lastly" continued Dumbledore when the room was once again silent "Anyone wishing to try out for their house Quidditch team should attend their team try-outs in the second week of the semester, please note that trying out for your house Quidditch team is only open to second year's and above. Now I don't doubt that you are all just dying to get back to your common rooms and relax, so off to bed with you, chop chop."

And with that the room once again broke into loud commotion as the students stood up from their table and made their way towards the common room.

"So, what do you guys make of this new Professor" asked Antares of his friend as they got up from their seats and made their towards the entrance hall.

"Well the Graves are a Pureblood family, but apart from that I don't know anything about him" said Caroline.

"All I know is that he better be competent, the last thing we need is another Defence Against the Dark Arts professor who has no idea what they're doing" said Xavier, to which the rest of them agreed.

"And what if he is incompetent" asked Tristan with raised eyebrows.

"Well then we'll just have to make sure that Professor Graves goes on a little holiday, won't we?" said Antares, to which the rest of them grinned mischievously at one another.

'Let's just hope for your sake Professor that you do a better job than your predecessors' thought Antares as he followed his friends past the portrait of their house namesake and into the common room beyond.


	6. Chapter 6

After Antares had inducted the first years into the Slytherin way of life, which was one of his duties as a prefect, he joined his friends in the common room to catch up and discuss things that couldn't be discussed in public because of their sensitive nature.

The Slytherin common room was relatively large. It was furnished with expensive yet tasteful furniture that was black, silver and dark green in colour. Unlike the other three houses, each student in Slytherin got their own personal dorm room, which could be any size the student wanted depending on how much your parents wanted to pay for it. Antares' parents had of course bought the biggest room size available, for nothing but the best was fit for their sons.

It was many hours later - in the early hours of the morning - that the common room finally began to empty, the students finally decided it was time for bed. Antares however stayed seated, having noticed that Jasper had made no move to get up from his position by the fire.

Antares, and the rest of his friends, had been unable to get the teen to talk to any of them about what was wrong with him, Tristan knew of course, but had refused to tell any of them, saying it wasn't his information to tell.

"Look, Jasper" said Antares as he stood up from his seat, "I know that I don't know what it is that you're going through, and I don't know what it is that I, or any of the others, can do to help you with whatever's bothering you. Just know that were here for you whenever you are ready to tell us".

Antares took one last look at his friend, whose back was facing him as he gazed into the fire, before turning around to make his way to his dorm

"A Marriage Contract" said Jasper quietly.

"What!" said Antares, whipping around sharply, thinking that Jasper had somehow found out about the marriage contract between himself and the Helena Greengrass.

"What do you mean A Marriage Contract?"

"My parents …" said Jasper slowly, his voice croaking slightly" My parents … have seen fit to put me in a Marriage Contract".

Antares heart sank just a little at these words. It was one thing for him to be in a Marriage Contract, he loved women and knew how to interact with them. Jasper, on the other hand, wasn't so confident. Jasper hadn't had any dealings with women besides Sophia, Caroline, the professors and his family. Antares didn't know why his friend was so shy of people, especially women, and when he had asked his friend why, had been told "that's how I've always been". His heart went out to his friend because he knew that it would be hard for him to cope with the fact that he would eventually have to come out of his shy and introverted ways in order to interact with his future wife.

"Who is to be the future Lady Avery?" asked Antares, taking a seat beside his friend. "If you don't mind me asking ... that is".

"Sarah West" replied Jasper, still gazing into the fire.

Sarah West was a 7th year Hufflepuff. She was quiet pretty in her own way and came from a respectable Pureblood family that were very Anti-Muggle.

"Well at least she's comely enough" said Antares, grinning slightly.

"What am I to do Antares?" asked Jasper after a while, finally looking away from the fire and towards his friend.

Antares didn't know what to say. He wanted to help his friend of course, but didn't know exactly how. He could of course tell Jasper that he too was being subjected to a marriage contract, at least then Jasper wouldn't feel so alone. But Antares didn't know if he was ready to reveal his betrothal to Helena. It wasn't that he was embarrassed or ashamed of the fact that he was being betrothed, it was that once everyone knew he was to be married, his entire reputation would be forever changed.

"I have something to tell you Jasper. Something that you must promise to tell no one." said Antares after a long while.

"You know me Antares, have I ever broken a promise"

Antares nodded his head, to his knowledge Jasper knew how to keep a secret. Antares didn't know if what he was about to reveal was for the best or not, but if it helped his friend deal with his own situation than at least he was being a good friend.

"I too am to be married" announced suddenly Antares to his friend.

"W – wh – what do you mean you're to be married?" stuttered Jasper, eyebrows raised high in confusion.

"I mean exactly that." replied Antares. "I too have found myself forced into a marriage contract against my will".

"Since when?" asked Jasper after getting over his shock.

"The end of summer. And before you ask, Helena Greengrass" said Antares, already anticipating Jasper's next question.

Several minutes of silence passed between them, the both of them thinking about the situation that would be affecting them both in the near future.

It was Jasper who eventually broke this silence, his natural curiosity getting the best of him.

"How do you feel?" he asked Antares.

"Hmm?' hummed Antares, not fully understanding what he was being asked.

"About the contract. How do you feel?" Jasper asked for a second time.

Antares didn't answer straight away. For once in his life he didn't know what to say, and even if he did, he didn't know whether he was interested in revealing such private information. He had been taught from a young age to keep your cards close to your chest, even amongst friend, for friends can turn into enemies just as quickly as enemies can become friends. Not that he was worried about Jasper becoming his enemy or anything along those lines, he just took his privacy very seriously.

"I don't rightly know" replied Antares eventually, deciding that Jasper's question wasn't harmful in any way.

"At first I wasn't particularly happy with my parents. How could I when they had made one of the most important decisions in my life without consulting me. The fact that my future wife is someone as beautiful as Helena Greengrass does take some of the sting out of the situation. I mean, have you seen that ass" Antares said jokingly to his friend, a large grin plastered on his face.

Antares grin faltered however. Jasper was once again gazing into the fire, a sad and worried expression on his face.

Antares was quickly getting fed up with Jasper's moodiness. He knew first-hand what it was like to find out that you were to be married to someone you hadn't even met, but that didn't give Jasper the right to act all sullen and depressed. He had gotten over the fact that he was to be married, so why couldn't Jasper?

"Don't worry about your situation too much Jasper. For all you know this may be the best thing that's ever happened to you" Said Antares quietly as he stood up from his position on the floor.

Antares turned in the direction of his dorm and was halfway across the room when Jasper finally looked up.

"Thank you, Antares" he said. "For listening and confiding in me".

"Think nothing of it" Antares replied, "But do me a favour and make sure you don't go to bed too late, don't forget we have class first thing in the morning".

With that last parting statement, Antares walked out of the common room and made his way towards his room, which was located at the end of a long corridor lined with black doors with silver handles.

Antares opened his door and quickly made his way inside, quiet keen to go to bed after such a long and mildly stress-full day.

When Antares entered his room for the first time in over 2 months, a genuine smile crept onto his face. Sometimes he just loved being rich.

To say that his room was extravagant would be doing his room an injustice.

The room measured around 8 metres width by 6 metres in length, the floor was made out of white marble and the walls of black granite. A large California king bed made of some type of wood stood against the wall in the middle of the room, nicely decorated by a silver and black duvet. On the left, the entire side of the wall was covered by a very modern looking bookshelf, the only odd thing being was that it was covered from head to toe with what seemed like a thousand old and dusty tomes. Beside his bed stood two side table, one on either side and each piled high with whatever books he had been reading the last time he was here. To the right of his room stood a very large desk, a freestanding mirror, two armoires (one for casual clothes and the other for robes) and his banner displaying the black family crest. In the centre of his room – between the door and his bed – lie a very large black furry rug which had silver accents running through it. All in all it was a very large, very comfortable room that displayed enough wealth so as not to appear gaudy and wasteful. To Antares it was more than just a bedroom, to him, it was his home away from home.

Walking over to the right side of the room, Antares began to get read to bed. Firstly he took off his shoes, and socks, his robe, tie, shirt and pants wore soon to follow. Once he was standing in just his boxers – surprisingly not black but a dark red in colour – he pulled out his wand and quickly cast a mouth cleaning charm, before placing his wand and his bedside table – atop a pile of books – before climbing into bed.

Today had been a long, yet interesting, day for Antares. Not only had he secured some intimate time with Lily, he had also got to finally meet up with his friends and had found out that his friend was in the same situation that he was. The year had started off on a relatively good note and he was quite looking forward to the year to come. In previous years he had focused primarily on having a good time, spending time with friends and various women and focusing on his studies. Yet this year was going to be unlike previous years. This year he would be focusing on his long-term goals and plans for his future.

Originally his plan was to graduate from Hogwarts, slowly enter the political scene and eventually build towards his goals. But his plans had changed because of his marriage contract. How was he supposed to accomplish his goals whilst also having to play host to his wife, who he would have to have a child with within the next five years. So he had decided to move his plans forward by several years. This year he wasn't going to waste his time studying extra hard or chasing girls, instead he would be planning his - and the Black family - rise to power.

Seeing as it was getting late into the morning, Antares closed his eyes and relaxed into soft embrace that was his bed. Yet just as he was on the brink of falling asleep, when he thought he heard something that sounded suspiciously like footsteps coming from outside his door.

Sitting up, Antares listened for the sound again. This time he was sure he could hear footsteps, and they sounded like they were coming closer towards his room. Reaching towards his bedside table, Antares picked up his wand and grasped it loosely in his hand. Even though he was in the relatively safe confines of the Slytherin dorms, one could never be too careful when it came to personal safety.

It was when whoever was in the hall stopped outside his door and began to turn the handle that Antares had a sneaking suspicion of who was on the other side of the door. His wand however, didn't leave his side.

His door slowly opened. At first he wasn't able to see who it was because of the light, so he illuminated the room with a quick _"Lumos"._

"I thought it might've been you" said Antares to his visitor.

There, in the middle of his room and in the middle of the night, stood none other than his very good friend, Sophia Wilkes.

She was wearing her usual white mid-thigh dressing gown that was held together by a velvet sash, as well a very sultry look on her beautiful face.

Without saying a word Sophia untied the sash that was around her waist, before slowly – and seductively – removing the dressing gown altogether.

Antares eyes shined with lust as he watched one of his best friends disrobe before him, his manhood becoming aroused when he saw what Sophia was wearing underneath the robe.

Sophia's figure was positively gorgeous. Although Sophia had a very lithe figure, she had curves in all the right places. Her stomach, legs, arms and thigh were tight and toned to perfection and her breasts were a firm and perky C-cup. Yet it was her bum that Antares liked the most, it was round and full yet not outrageously so and fit wonderfully in the palms of his hand. Yet her body was only part of the equation, it was what she was wearing that made her all the more beautiful.

Sophia was wearing perhaps the sexiest piece of lingerie that he had ever laid eyes upon. Her breasts were covered by a black strapped bar that fitted her perfectly, and thin black panties that hugged her hips and perfect ass whilst also showing off her long beautiful legs. Her outfit was brought together by a black see-through mid-thigh camisole that had no sleeves and was tied at the front by a little black bow.

"Well. What are you waiting for?" she said, looking directly towards Antares, who up until this point hadn't managed to take his eyes off of her.

With that Antares pushed back his covers and scrambled out of bed. In what seemed like a second flat he had crossed the room and had captured her lips in a passionate kiss.

Antares forehead pressed gently against hers as he closed his eyes for a second, basking in the softness that was her lips. Wrapping his arms around her waist he pulled her closer against him, getting a moan of approval from Sophia as hers hands became lost in his hair. Parting his lips slightly, Antares slid his tongue across her bottom lip, seeking entrance to her mouth, which she of course accepted.

Antares's mouth drifted away from Sophia's mouth, his lips placing tiny kisses against her jawline and down to her throat. As he did this Sophia's hands drifted away from his hair and towards his chest, her fingernails scraping lightly against his muscled pecs as Antares began to make his way past her throat and towards her cleavage.

Deciding that things would be much more comfortable on the bed, Antares stopped what he was doing – much to the disappointment of Sophia – and picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. Walking towards his bed, Antares through her – gently he might add – onto the bed.

For a second Antares stopped what he was doing and gazed down upon the beautiful women the lay before him. Sophia looked positively stunning as she lay upon his green and silver duvet, her beautiful tanned skin and magnificent figure looking positively radiant as she gazed back up at him, her bottom lip clenched between straight white teeth and her eyes practically begging him to make love to her.

"Oh How I love my life" thought Antares before summoning his wand and cancelling the lighting charm he had placed upon the room. The room became pitch black and all that was to be heard for the next several hours was the rhythmic slapping of flesh against flesh and the low, throaty moans that would escape through their lips every now and again.

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A/N - A link to Sophia's lingerie can be found on my profile.


	7. Chapter 7 - Part 1

A/N : TEST CHAPTER. Part 1 of Chapter 7, more to come soon.

Have decided to pick up writing again, please no hate. Opinions and Reviews Welcome. This is just to see if I can continue from where I left off.

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Antares awoke at roughly the crack of dawn, exactly as he had done for the past 5 years. Yet this time wasn't like every other time he could think of. For the first time in a very long time, he, Antares Black, had awoken to that of a slightly guilty conscious.

Sitting up in his overly luxurious bed, he gazed down to his right where he saw the very sexy, very nude, form of one of his closest friends laying right beside him. Pulling back the covers of his duvet, Antares swung his legs over the side of his bed and stood up, his own nakedness also being on display for the world to see.

For a second he was mesmerized by the rhythmic beauty of watching Sophia's sleeping form. The way her pert breasts rose and fell with each breath was truly a site to behold, one he had trouble turning away from. After he finally turned his gaze away from her magnificent assets, he quickly used a switching spell to transfer his workout clothes and shoes onto his body before covering up Sophia's exposed body and then opening his bedroom door.

Antares silently made his way through the cold and austere room space that was the Slytherin common room, the smouldering ashes of the previous night's fire being the only thing to illuminate his path.

In hardly any time at all he had traversed the familiar halls that were the Slytherin Dungeons, down through the entrance hall and past the great wooden doors that led to the grounds of the school.

Outside was significantly brighter than inside the castle, as well as significantly colder. So cold in fact that every time he exhaled, a foggy breath of air was soon to follow. The sun had yet to fully pass the Scottish mountains that encircled the Hogwarts grounds, as such the sky was filled with a dark blue hue that barely illuminate his path to his intended destination, the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch.

The Quidditch Pitch wasn't somewhere that one would expect to find Antares Black. For one, it was a widely known fact (within Hogwarts) that Antares thought the sport was mind-numbingly boring and a complete waste of one's time, and secondly, it was 6:00 O'clock in the morning for merlin's sake. Yet unknown to the masses, the Quidditch pitch was one of his favorite places in the entire school (besides the beds of any willing witches that is).

It was on this large field of green grass and golden hoops that he was able to collect his thoughts and calm his mind, away from the prying eyes of his housemates. It was also a great place to undertake his rather intense exercise regime, which was the reason he was here now.

Taking off his heavy fur cloak and chucking it onto the frosted grass, Antares did some quick warm-up stretches before taking off at a brisk pace around the Quidditch Pitch.

Seeing as he was a pureblood wizard from a rich and distinguished family, one would think that he would see exercising as common and beneath him, yet this wasn't the case at all. In fact, Antares loved both exercising and eating healthily, knowing from experience that a strong and healthy body equaled even stronger magic.

Antares breathed heavily as his brisk jog turned into a fast-paced walk, his mind turning from focusing on his workout to more important matters. Matters concerning his regret about sleeping with the woman currently residing completely naked in his overly large, overly opulent king-size bed.

It wasn't the fact that he had slept with one of his best friends, he and Sophia had had a "Friends with Benefits" type of relationship since their 4th year. It was more to do with the fact that he hadn't told her about his Marriage Contract to Helena Greengrass before having sex with her, a fact that she most definitely would want to know.

But that wasn't that wasn't the only reason for his guilt. He was guiltier about the fact that he had basically cheated on his future wife.

He knew that he wasn't technically married to Helena for another few years, but that didn't mean he could just go around dishonoring her like he had just effectively done. It wasn't something a true gentleman would do, and he at least considered himself enough of a gentleman to uphold his side of their Marriage Contract.

He knew exactly why he hadn't told Sophia about the Marriage Contract before they had slept together last night, and he would shamelessly admit that it was for all the wrong reasons. He knew that it would have taken less than 5 minutes to explain his situation to her, which would have saved him from the slight guilt trip that he was currently experiencing.

Antares knew that deep down he was somewhat of a selfish person, and he also knew that if he had told her that he was contracted to marry Helena Greengrass after she had so boldly walked into his room wearing hardly anything at all, that she would more than likely just turn around and leave.

Finding out about his marriage contract to Helena Greengrass had put quite the damper on his summer activities, activities that he used to relax and recuperate after a long and stressful year.

Usually, these activities consisted of, reading old tomes on Archaic magic, practicing his wandwork, lounging on his family's private beach in France, partying with friends and occupying the beds of his various paramours.

Seeing as he had hardly got to do any of these things because of his ill-tempered state regarding the news of his Marriage Contract, it was a very tense and sexually frustrated Antares that had returned to Hogwarts for his sixth year of schooling. So when he had been gifted with an opportunity to take out some of these frustrations, he had given in to his more selfish instincts and not said anything to Sophia about his current situation.

Pushing these thoughts from his mind, Antares stepped up his pace until he was all but sprinting around the Quidditch Pitch. It was only when both his legs began to ache and his white workout shirt was covered in sweat, that he decided to make his way back inside and get ready for the day ahead.

Upon returning to the Slytherin common room, Antares was surprised to see that only 3 people (all of them first years by the looks of it) were currently awake and ready for classes. Casting a quick Tempus, he saw that it was only 7:00, meaning he had two hours before his classes started.

Passing his fellow housemates without a second glance, Antares made his way down the dimly lit hall to where his dorm room was located.

Opening his door and quietly closing it behind him, Antares was met with the very peculiar site of an empty bed.

At first, he thought that she had perhaps gone down to breakfast but then realized that breakfast wouldn't be served for at least another half hour. He then thought that perhaps she had decided to leave early in order to not be seen by any of their classmates, their intimate relationship being a highly guarded secret.

Both of his thoughts were quickly dismissed when he heard the unmistakable sound of running water coming from the direction of his bathroom.

Antares let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding in. For the briefest of moments he had thought that perhaps she had left, not wanting to deal with the sometimes awkward conversations that resulted after they had engaged in sexual activities.

Taking off his thick woolen cloak and throwing it onto his bed, Antares stripped down to the buff before walking over to the ensuite and opening the door. A thick mist of steam escaping the room as he did so.

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R&amp;R for MoRE!


	8. Chapter 7 - Part 2

A/N - Part 2 of Chapter 7 || This chapter is just a continuation of the previous chapter, that is the reason for the such short length. This is more of a filler chapter until the juicy stuff starts to happen in the next few chapters. I am hoping to finish this story this year and expect it to reach at least 120K+ Words.

R&amp;R Please :)

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Inside was what one would expect an expensive bathroom to look like. The room was roughly 2 meters by 2 meters in length, with the floor and walls made out of white and black marble tiles. The room was richly decorated with several mirrors, a toilet, spa, sink and shower. The shower took up the back right-hand corner, had a large glass door and could easily fit at least 3 people. It also happened to be magical. The water magically pouring down from the roof and disappearing as soon as it touched the floor.

It was who was in the shower that really captured his attention though. From his position by the door he could easily see Sophia's back as she showered, her beautiful nude body looking magnificent as magically created water cascaded over her.

Walking forward, Antares opened the large glass door and stepped into the shower.

"How's it going gorgeous" he asked Sophia as he slid into the shower beside her.

"Much better now that you're here." she replied as she turned around, stepping closer towards him as she did so.

"How was your run?"

"Rather good if I do say so myself. I think I even managed to work out all of the aches and pains from last nights' activities" replied Antares with a smirk.

"I'll take that as compliment" Sophia said with a small smile of her own.

"It was meant as one" Antares replied as he stepped forward and captured her lips in a passionate kiss, his arms automatically snaking behind her to position themselves on her bountifully curved bum.

Sophia's armed wrapped around Antares waist as she deepened the kiss, her wet breasts pressing firmly against his muscled abdomen. For a long while the two of them just stood there. Basking in each other's presence as the steaming water washed over them, their lips playing a gentle game of tug-of-war as their wandering hands began to explore the others body, lingering longest on places of a more intimate nature.

"As much as I'd love to do this all day, and trust me I would" Antares said as he reluctantly removed himself from her embrace. "But I'd rather not have to explain to McGonagall as to why I didn't turn up to class on time".

Sophia sighed as she nodded, knowing that if they didn't leave soon that they wouldn't make it breakfast, let alone class, on time.

Pressing a rune on the shower wall, the magically created water came to a stop. As they stepped out of the shower and onto a large white mat (that was covered in runes), both of them stood completely still as an invisible wave of warm air blew up from the ground.

After they had both completely dried off and exited the bathroom, Antares got dressed in his school robes whilst Sophia put her dressing gown back on and quietly slipped out of his room.

After Sophia had left Antares took a seat on the edge of his bed. Lying down so that his feet were on the floor and his head was looking up at his ceiling, Antares reflected on his shower with Sophia as he waited for said person to return from getting dressed.

After his run this morning he had come to a decision regarding his and Sophia's rather intimate relationship.

Like all major decisions in his life, he had chosen one that would benefit him the most and affect him the least.

He had decided that seeing as he hadn't even met Helena, let alone spoke to her, that it meant he wasn't technically being unfaithful. If he had been intimate with another woman after the announcement had been made public and the courting had commenced, he could see how that could be seen as downright scandalous. Thankfully he had an entire week before the Courting began and the news would be announced to the world, something he wasn't particularly looking forward to.

It was this style of thinking that made him act the way he had whilst in the shower with Sophia. If he had one week left before he was going to be effectively tied down for the rest of his life, then he was going to make sure that he got to sample all the goods that Hogwarts had to offer before he wouldn't be able to.

Hearing a small knock on his door that he assumed was Sophia back from getting dressed, he stood up from his bed.

Scanning his room to make sure he hadn't left anything behind, Antares picked up his leather book bag and placed his wand in the inner pocket of his robe. His hand lingered on the door handle for a few seconds as he implemented his Occlumency shields, before opening it to reveal Sophia's smiling face. Smiling back at her Antares pulled out his wand and quickly cast an advanced locking charm on his bedroom door. Coincidentally, the spell he had just used was one of the first spells he had learned whilst at Hogwarts, his safety being at the height of his priority's.

"You looking forward to this year Antares?" asked Sophia as they descended the dimly lit hall side by side.

"Truthfully, I don't rightly know Soph" Antares replied after a moment of though.

"I'm hoping that it will be the same as last year. You know, study hard to get good grades, hang out with the gang and just enjoy life. But a part of me feels that things are somehow going to be different this year. I just don't know exactly how or why".

Antares voice fell silent as they entered the common room, his mask slipping back into place as he spotted his friends in a corner by the fire place. Walking over to greet them he wasn't able to catch the concerned look that Sophia was giving him.

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A/N Please Read and Review if you enjoyed. Your reviews really inspire me to write better :)

Next Chapter is Called = First Day of Class


	9. Chapter 8 - Part 1

A/N - Have decided to upload my chapters in parts so that you guys get quicker updates. Judging by the length of this part I suspect Chapter 8 to be made up of 4 - 5 parts.

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Chapter 8 – First Day of Class [Pt.1]

Antares rolled his eyes in boredom as he effortlessly swished his wand back and forth, making a silver goblet appear and then disappear before his eyes. Sometimes being ahead of the class wasn't always as fun as one would think.

Casually scanning the room from his position at the back of the class, Antares couldn't help but shake his head at his classmate's pathetic attempts at Conjuration. It would seem that Transfiguration wasn't meant for everyone.

Checking to his left and right where both Xavier and Sophia were seated beside him, he was glad to see that they had at least accomplished the task set to them by their aging Transfiguration professor. He never did like hanging around with incompetent people, it didn't reflect well on him as the Scion of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black.

Quietly waiting for the class to end, Antares pushed the thoughts of the Hufflepuffs complete ineptitude to perform basic magic out of his mind. He instead focused his attention back to breakfast an hour previous.

Breakfast had been a simple affair. He and his friends had arrived in the Great Hall at roughly 8:00, a time when all four tables were nearly at capacity and the entire room was bursting with conversation. He had sat on either side of Sophia and Caroline, with Xavier, Tristan, and Jasper sitting across the table from them.

The conversation topics were what one would expect from your average group of sixteen-year-olds. Revolving mostly around which classes each other were taking, their plans for the upcoming year, who was dating who, their opinions on the new DADA Professor and other sorts of unimportant questions.

He had then been interrupted from his breakfast of porridge and tea when his schedule for the year had made their way into his lap. Holding the parchment in one hand and his cup of tea in other, he had glanced down at his schedule and nodded his head in acknowledgement.

Antares had internally smirked when he noticed that he coincidentally had Transfiguration first thing after breakfast, his joke earlier to Sophia being completely made in jest. Besides Transfiguration, he had double Defence Against the Dark Arts with the new professor and Arithmancy before dinner.

He was brought out of his musings about breakfast by the sound of a clearing throat. Raising his head, he was met with the stern face of Professor Minerva McGonagall.

"Mr. Black, why are you not practicing the assigned task?"

"I've completed it Professor" replied Antares.

"A demonstration if you wouldn't mind" she said, one eyebrow raised in an expression of clear disbelieve.

Picking up his wand from the desk and sitting upright in his chair, Antares cleared his throat and spoke the spell in a strong clear voice.

"_Scyphum Argenti Ignis" _

The whole class, including the professor, stopped what they were doing to stare in amazement as Antares' spell began to take form.

From out of thin air a large silver goblet had begun to take shape. It stood at roughly one and a half feet tall, had intricate serpent carvings all over its body and had the Black Family crest (three crows and a wand on a shield of red, blue and white) emblazoned upon its front. Yet it wasn't the beauty of the goblet that held everyone's attentions. It was the intertwined silver and green flames that were spilling out of the top of it.

McGonagall couldn't help the slight smile that made its way onto her face as she began to applaud her student's display of Advanced Transfiguration. Conjuring two things at once was beyond even NEWT level classwork, she wondered when had he learned how to do such advanced magic.

"10 points to Slytherin, for an amazing display of Double Conjuration. However, if you find yourself ahead of my class again Mr. Black, I trust that you will do something more productive with your time than sitting about daydreaming." She said to Antares once the commotion in the room had died down and the class had returned to work.

"Of course Professor. I shall refrain from doing so in the future" Antares replied as he vanished his goblet with a wave of his wand, before relaxing once more into his chair.

Internally he was grinning. It wasn't every day that he got to show off his magical prowess, opting to usually keep his skills to himself. Revealing one's full capabilities to potential enemies was never a smart move, one his father had often reminded him of.

"Show off" muttered a smirking Xavier from his quite used to his friend's dramatics by now.

"Jealous much?" Antares whispered back, his eyes lit with clear amusement.

"Hardly -"

Xavier's full response was cut off by the ringing of the school bell, signalling the end of their first class of the day.

"For those of you that were unable to complete the assigned task today, I'd like a foot of parchment on the properties of a Conjuration and the reason it is so difficult to master. To everyone else you are exempt from this week's homework assignment and are instead encouraged to keep on practicing the spell with more difficult materials" called out McGonagall from 6the front of the classroom.

Following his classmate's example, Antares shoved his Transfiguration books into his bag and stood up from his chair.

Knowing that Sophia and Xavier's schedule may differ from his own, he asked them what class they had next whilst they exited the room together.

"DADA with Professor Graves," said Sophia.

"Same" replied Xavier and Antares in almost perfect unison, the two of them turning to grin at each other in amusement.

"I wonder if this new teacher will be any good or not. I hope he's at least better than Professor Smyth was last year" mused Xavier as the three of them made their way towards the DADA Classroom on the second floor.

"He couldn't possibly be any worse than Professor Smyth" replied Sophia. "Remember how he used to force us to literally copy the textbook word-for-word onto parchment instead of actually teaching us, absolutely pathetic in my opinion".

"What about you Antares?" asked Xavier of his best friend. "What do you think the new Professor will be like".

"We both know that my opinion hardly matters Xavier, seeing as we're about to find out," Antares said as they turned the corner and the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom came into view.

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_Scyphum Argenti Ignis = Goblet of Fire _


	10. Chapter 8 - Part 2

A/N - Part 2 of Chapter 8. I am now uploading my chapters in parts in order to upload faster. Chapter 8 - Part 3 coming soon.

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Chapter 8 – First Day of Class [Pt.2]

As Antares and his friends entered the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, they were surprised to see that nearly all of the desks had someone occupying them. Being the last students to arrive to class meant that they had to sit wherever there was a free desk. Unluckily for them, this happened to be at the very front of the class. A place where there was no privacy from the ever-watchful eyes of their professor.

There was a reason he and his friends usually arrived to class before everyone else. Sitting in the back row of the room gave them enough cover to whisper amongst themselves, a luxury that wasn't available at the front of the class.

Seeing as they had no other option, Antares, Sophia and Xavier quickly and quietly took their seats at the front of the room.

The DADA classroom was both big and spacious, perhaps the biggest classroom that Hogwarts had to offer. The room was rectangular in shape, measuring about 40 metres by 15 metres. In the middle of the room were rows upon rows of wooden desks, numbering at roughly around 40 or so. The front of the room was made up of the teachers much larger mahogany desk, overflowing with various pieces of parchments and teaching apparatus. Behind the desk was a blackboard (currently blank) that took up a large portion of the wall. The room was illuminated by 8 large glass windows on the left side of the room.

It wasn't the room that currently held Antares attention, though. He had been in this room hundreds of times over the past 6 years. What held his attention was the man sitting behind the large desk at the front of the room.

Having only barely seen the new professor at the Hogwarts opening feast, Antares took his time to carefully study the man that would be teaching him for the entire year.

Judging from how he was sitting he was able to tell that Nathaniel Graves wasn't a particularly tall man, standing at roughly around five and a half feet tall. If he had to guess Antares would have assumed that he was perhaps 45 to 50 years' old, Antares based this upon the frown lines that were beginning to line his face. He had short brown hair, brown eyes and an oddly crooked nose. He was of average build, not being portly nor particularly slim, and wore a pair of expensive looking day robes of a dark burgundy colour.

Antares had to cut his analysis short because the man he was analysing had gotten to his feet and walked to the front of his desk.

"Good morning and welcome students of Slytherin and Ravenclaw, to your first Defence Against the Dark Arts class of the year. My name is Professor Nathaniel Graves and I am to be your defence professor for the upcoming year" greeted Professor Graves, his clear voice carrying itself to the very corners of the room.

The entire class listened intently as the new professor introduced himself, all of them curious to see whether or not he was a teacher that could earn their respect.

Seeing that he had their undivided attention, Professor Graves continued to speak.

"Seeing as this our very first class together and I am currently unaware of where you each are academically; I propose a duelling competition to showcase your magical defence knowledge."

As the professor said this, the demeanour of the students changed dramatically. The entire class went from being respectfully quiet to heatedly animated with the span of a minute. The excitement quite clear on the grinning faces of every student present.

Antares was one of the grinning students. The professor's announcement that they would be duelling one another had captured his undivided attention. If there was one thing that he liked more than learning and developing his magic, it was showing it off to those less gifted than himself.

In all his years at Hogwarts he had never been able to showcase his fully magical ability to his classmates, and this time, wouldn't be any different. To showcase his full repertoire of magic on something as trivial as a sixth-year defence class would be a complete misuse of his magic. Showing just enough to upstage his fellow students, however, was something he was completely looking forward to.

"Quiet down everyone so I can tell you how this is going to work." called Professor Graves over the excited chatter that his earlier statement had caused.

"Seeing as we don't have all time in the world, the competition shall follow the style of a single elimination tournament. Meaning that once you lose a duel you are unable to compete for the rest of the competition. Last person standing at the end of the lesson shall receive a prize worthy of the effort".

The mention of a prize seemed to only add fuel to the fire as the class became animated once more. So much so that the professor had to wait several seconds before he continued to talk.

"Duelling partners will be randomly drawn from a hat for the sake of impartiality. When I call your name make sure you remember who you are paired with as the first set of duels will occur simultaneously".

As he finished speaking he waved his wand and conjured a large black bowler hat, which he then filled with several strips of parchment. Each strip containing the name of one of his students.

Placing his hand into the conjured hat he selected two pieces of parchment. Pulling his hand back he read out the first pair of duelling partners.

"Xavier Nott versus Elliott Holland" Professor Graves announced to the awaiting class in a loud, booming voice.

Hearing his friend's name Antares couldn't help the smirk that made its way onto his face. Whilst the Ravenclaw prefect was no slouch when it came to magical knowledge he was less adept at actually performing said magic.

Xavier, on the other hand, was one of the strongest magic users in the school, second only to himself and perhaps the seventh year students. Antares had no doubt that this was Xavier's battle to win.

"Madison Clark versus Samuel Atkins" called out the professor after withdrawing two more pieces of parchment from the hat.

Antares expression became calculating as he tried to analyse this particular match up. Madison and Samuel were about the same in terms of magical power and magical knowledge. He based this on overall performance in prior classes they had shared together. Seeing as he didn't exactly know the two of them, he could only assume that this duel would be a fairly even match-up that either one of them could win.

This pattern continued for several minutes. Professor Graves would announce the names of the two students duelling and Antares would silently predict who he thought was going to win. Some of the match-ups were easy to predict, others were quite evenly matched and others he didn't even know where to begin.

It was only after Sophia had just been matched up with Alicia Moore (an easy victory for Sophia in his opinion) that his name was finally drawn.

"Antares Black versus Helena Greengrass"

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Please Read and Review :)


	11. Chapter 8 - Part 3

A/N - Sorry If it feels a bit rushed, a bit busy at the moment and wanted to get this out for you guys.

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Chapter 8 – First Day of Class [Pt.3]

Antares sat frozen in his seat as he tried to process what he had just heard. Either his mind was playing tricks on him or the new defence professor had just read out his name, and the name of his betrothed.

Taking a deep breath in order to calm himself, Antares turned in his seat and discreetly scanned the room for his wife-to-be. He didn't have to search for very long.

Seated at the very back of the room and surrounded by a group of her Ravenclaw housemates was the unmistakable beauty that was Helena Greengrass.

He didn't know how he could possibly miss the fact that his future wife was sitting not 4 metres away from him. He assumed that in his haste to sit down he hadn't taken the time to actually see who his fellow defence classmate where. His position at the front of the room making it extremely difficult to look behind him without drawing unwanted attention to himself.

Focusing his attention back on Helena, Antares noticed that she had changed dramatically since he had last seen her at the end of his fifth year.

Helena stood at around 5 feet and a half feet tall and had a slim, statuesque figure. She had a pretty oval-shaped face, small rounded chin and cute straight-edged nose. She had wavy dark brown hair that started off very dark and got slightly lighter as it reached to just below her shoulder blades. It was her warm brown eyes and a large mesmerising smile that really accentuated her natural beauty.

If there was one thing he was grateful for in this entire Marriage Contract situation, it was that his father had chosen someone that was no doubt one of the most beautiful females in the entire school.

As Antares was subtly looking towards Helena, he noticed that she looked about as nervous as he felt.

Which was a great deal more now that he had found out that his future wife was selected as his duelling partner. He had to internally laugh at the irony of his situation. Out of the thirty-something students that were in the sixth year defence class, he had to be partnered up with the one person he wasn't even supposed to be in the same vicinity as.

Even without the fact that the courting forbade them from interacting with one another, Antares knew that there was no way in hell that he was ever going to stand against her.

Turning back around so that he was once more facing the front of the class, Antares thought about what he was going to do in order to get out of the situation he was currently in.

Not wanting to draw attention to himself, Antares waited until everyone was getting up and partnering up with their duelling partner before standing up and walking towards the professor's desk.

"May I have a word professor?" Antares asked of his new defence professor.

Putting down the quill that he was writing with, Professor Graves looked up to see that one of his students was standing before him.

"Of course. What seems to be the problem Mr. –" replied the professor, purposefully cutting his sentence short since he didn't know who he was speaking to.

"Black. Antares Black" said Antares before continuing.

"I was wondering if I could be paired with someone else for the duelling competition"

"Do you have a valid reason as to why Miss Greengrass is an unworthy duelling partner Mr. Black ?" asked Professor Graves with a puzzled look on his face.

Antares didn't see why he should divulge the information that he and Helena were to be betrothed. Especially to someone he had literally just met. The fact that this person happened to be his professor had no bearing on the situation at all.

"Personal reasons mostly. We dated for a time and things didn't end very favourably" lied Antares expertly.

"Hardly a valid reason to not duel each other. In fact, it's probably more of a reason for the two of you to dual, get out that pre-relationship anger and what not." Professor Graves said jovially, clearly not taking his request as seriously as Antares had hoped.

"Now if that's your only reason for being up here, then I highly suggest that you make your way over to your assigned partner and begin your duel".

With that statement the middle-aged professor looked expectantly at Antares, obviously waiting for the teen to return to his seat.

Antares stood silently as his new professor denied his request to change his duelling partner. He guessed that his lie hadn't worked as he had originally intended, he would even go so far as to say it was perhaps the main reason his request hadn't been granted. Antares internally shrugged, the lie having been the best he could come up with in such short notice.

Knowing that duelling his betrothed was completely out of the question, Antares did the only sensible thing that he could think off.

He straightened his back, turned on his heel and walked towards the exit.

"Mr. Black where do you think you're going" demanded Professor Graves, suddenly getting to his feet.

The whole room suddenly became deathly quiet. Every student in the room stopping what they were doing in order to see what all the commotion was about.

Not knowing how to respond to his professor's question, Antares just flat-out ignored him.

"If you take one more step Mr. Black you will be spending your evening in detention" Professor Graves called to Antares retreating form, his face slowly turning a violent shade of red.

Antares stopped abruptly, his hand resting on the door handle as he heard the professor's ultimatum.

The professors threat of detention was hardly a threat at all. If he was given the choice to protect his honour and that of his future wife in exchange for a day – hell even a month – of detention, then he would choose detention every single time.

Knowing that he couldn't appear intimidated in front of his peers, his friends and especially his betrothed, Antares straightened his back, turned the door knob and exited the defence room without a backwards glance.

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R&amp;R Please Guys :) &amp; Currently Looking for a Beta Reader, PM if your interested or if you have any questions.


	12. Chapter 8 - Part 4

Chapter 8 – First Day of Class [Pt.4]

Antares was feeling quiet amused as he strode towards the Slytherin Dungeons, despite the eventful situation that had just occurred. Never, in all his years at Hogwarts, had he received a detention before.

One would assume that given who he was that he would have had been put into detention at least once or twice in his five years of schooling, but that wasn't the case. Had he done things deserving of detention over the last five years? Of course he had. From sneaking out after dark, having sexual relations in various places throughout the castle and performing magic in the halls, Antares had done multiple things worthy of detention. But unlike his younger brother who couldn't pull of a simple prank without being caught, he was much better at not drawing unwanted attention to himself.

His amusement at his situation arose from the fact that his first ever detention wasn't due to him being caught doing something ('or someone' he internally smirked) that he shouldn't, but rather due to his refusal to duel off against his future wife.

His detention from Professor Graves was the reason that he was currently in the Slytherin Dungeons when he'd much rather be up in his dorm room reading or playing chess. He was heading down to see the Head of Slytherin House and resident Potions Master, Professor Horace Slughorn.

His decision to visit Slughorn wasn't made because he had an overwhelming desire to visit the aging professor, but rather one of convenience and self-servitude. Having never before experienced a detention at Hogwarts, Antares didn't plan on starting now.

He knew that his Head of House a very politically savvy individual. Somebody who could see the power and influence that his students would one day wield. Seeing as he would one day hold immense political and economic power, Antares knew that he held significant clout with his potions professor. It was this influence that he hoped to use in order to get out of Professor Graves detention.

After traversing the dimly lit dungeons for several minutes, he finally came to a stop outside the office door of his Head of House.

Schooling his features into a blank mask for what felt like the millionth time, Antares placed his Occlumency shields into full effect and knocked loudly upon the wooden door.

A muffled "Enter" was heard in reply.

Placing his hand on the large brass knob, Antares turned the handle, opened the door and entered the room.

Professor Slughorns office was exactly what one would expect from someone as pompous and grandiose as the elderly professor was. It was a fairly large room that contained a large fireplace with several beige leather sofas surrounding it. The overall colour scheme of the furniture, carpet and drapes consisted of various shades of gold, beige, burgundy and brown, and gave the room a look of gaudiness that Antares could never hope to achieve. A wooden desk and bookshelf was located on the left hand wall, with an ornate liquor cabinet situated to the right of the room. A door was located at the back the room that Antares assumed led to the professors sleeping quarters.

Sitting at the wooden desk with a quill in one hand and a glass of amber liquid in the other, was the unmistakable form of Professor Horace Slughorn.

"Ahhh Antares my boy, how wonderful it is to see you" exclaimed Slughorn with a wide grin, placing his quill and glass down upon the desk.

"Afternoon Sir. I trust your holiday wasn't too adventurous." replied Antares, taking a seat on the leather sofa that was offered to him.

"You know me Antares, I enjoy the small luxuries in life. Eating deliciously decadent deserts and partaking in some rather expensive wine is all the adventure I need." chuckled Slughorn, his large jowel dancing merrily as he did so.

"What about your own holidays? What does the young Antares Black get up to when he is not locked away studying?" asked the Professor with a curious expression on his face.

"My holidays were quiet average to say the least. Lots of political meeting and parties, press conferences and lessons from my father about managing our estate. Getting ready to take over my father's position in the future is hardly an enjoyable task. I know that I need to learn it all but it's quiet a tedious affair if you ask me" Antares said, telling the professor a very watered down version of his summer break without revealing any of his personal information.

Horace nodded his head in agreement, "But it is worth it in the end my dear boy, no matter how tedious and mind-numbingly boring it is. I myself had to endure the teachings of my father on the same subject over 80 years ago and I'm quiet glad that I did. To this day I still use the knowledge that he passed down to me when I was a young boy of sixteen."

Antares nodded along whilst internally cringing at the professor calling him 'dear boy'. He wasn't anybody's 'dear boy'. Even his mother and father didn't refer to him by such affectionate terms of endearment. If it was anybody else, he didn't think he would stand for such familiarity between himself and Slughorn. But his professor had a vast political network that was too valuable to ignore. So he kept a straight face and acted as if the bumbling old man was actually worth his time and effort, even if dealing with the man was mentally draining. As long as Slughorn continued to be a useful asset, then he would continue to suffer the man's presence.

Not wanting to spend longer than necessary in the old man's presence, Antares brought up the real reason he had come to visit his Head of House.

"I guess you would know better than I professor, you being a distinguished wizard with a strong political career. But as much as I would love to sit around and discuss such captivating topics with your fine self, I'm afraid that my visit is a bit more serious is nature" admitted Antares.

"What seems to be the problem Antares? You're not in any kind of legal trouble are you" asked Slughorn, his demeanour changing from jovial to serious.

"No, No, nothing quiet as serious as that" Antares hastily replied.

"I've been given detention by the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, and thought that as you're my Head of House that you may be able to land me a helping hand in the matter".

Slughorn visibly relaxed as he was told that Antares presence wasn't due to anything illegal. He did however have a surprised look on his face once he learned that one of his favourite students had received a detention.

"That seems very unlike you Antares. What could have possibly happened for you to receive a detention, and on the first day of class no less?" inquired a mystified Slughorn.

Now this was where things got a bit tricky for Antares. Did he disclose the real reason he had received the detention or did he make up some lie to hide his marriage contract from the professor?

"Well, the first class I had this morning was Defence Against the Dark Arts with Professor Graves. Him being the new professor, he wanted all of us to showcase our duelling skills. Naturally he had us get into pairs, but when my partner was announced I refused to duel against them. I told the professor that I didn't want to face off against my partner and when he tried to force me I turned around and left" recounted Antares honestly.

"Was there a specific reason that you didn't want to face off against your opponent? It isn't like you to back out of a challenge" asked Slughorn.

"Of course there is. If it was anybody else, I would have no reservations about showcasing my abilities to the new professor. But even I'm not as cold-hearted to bring myself to duel off against my future wife"

Slughorns eyes widened comically as Antares revealed his betrothal. Several moments passed before the professor regained his composure, standing up and shaking his hand vigorously.

"A guess a congratulations are in order my dear boy. Who shall the future Lady Black be, if you don't mind me asking?" asked Slughorn as he walked over towards his liquor cabinet.

"Helena Greengrass" replied Antares with a small grin.

"Simply wonderful my boy, Miss Greengrass is quiet the catch. She comes from a good pureblood family, is an excellent student and extremely beautiful. But I'm sure you know all of this already. I take it you are quiet happy with the decision?" commented Slughorn, returning from his liquor cabinet with two glasses of brandy.

"I am, all things considered. I think she and I will make quiet a good couple, if I do say so myself" said Antares, accepting the class that Slughorn offered him.

"Nobody else knows about my betrothal as of yet. I trust that this information will remain between the two of us"

"Of course, Of course" promised Slughorn. "You don't get to be the Head of Slytherin House for 50 years without knowing how to keep a few secrets."

"I propose a toast" said Slughorn, raising his glass in the air.

"To Antares Black, and his beautiful wife-to-be. May their love marriage be a happy one and their family names last forever".

Following Slughorns lead, Antares raised his glass into the air as well. When the professor's mini-toast ended, they both raised glass to their lips and downed their entire glass.

"Now" said Slughorn, "about your little detention problem. You leave it with me and I'll try my best to get you out of an official detention. You may need to do some sort of punishment, but I'll try and reason with Professor Graves so it shouldn't be anything too difficult".

"Thank-you sir. The Most Noble and Ancient House of Black won't forget this. I'll make sure you receive an invitation to the Black Family Gala at Christmas. It's the least I could do for the help and guidance you have given to me over the last 6 years" said Antares, making sure to stroke the professor's ego as much as he could.

"It's no trouble at all my dear boy. Making sure promising young wizards like yourself follow the right path in life is what a proper mentor is supposed to do." said the now blushing Professor, clearing loving the praise that he was currently receiving.

"Well I suppose I better head down to the great hall, lest I be late for lunch. Thanks again professor for the brandy and the company, and especially for the help with my detention situation" said Antares with a sullen expression, making sure to look very reluctant to leave the professors company.

"It was no trouble at all Antares. I too enjoyed our conversation today. I shall update you tomorrow about your punishment in place of your detention" replied Slughorn, taking the empty glass from Antares outstretched hands.

Bidding his Head of House one last goodbye, Antares turned on his heels and left the potions professors office, his lips pulled into a devilish smirk.

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Please Read and Review Guys! It really motivates me and I'd love to here your opinions :)


	13. Chapter 9 - Part 1

A/N

Hey guys, Check out my tumblr link on my profile to see images of all of my characters.

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The next morning saw Antares rise once again at the crack of dawn. But what was unique about this morning was that it was with great reluctance that Antares rose from his bed.

Today would mark the begging of the two-month long Courting ceremony between himself and Helena Greengrass.

It wasn't this alone that made him want to crawl under his duvet and never come out. It was the fact that today would be the day that everyone would find out about his betrothal contract with Helena. Not only would all of his friends, peers and professors know about his betrothal, but also the entirety of the Wizarding World.

Antares couldn't care about the opinion of those he didn't know, but those he did was a different story altogether. He was especially worried about how Sophia was going to react to this particular piece of news. Not kindly, was Antares's first thought.

His friends had re-acted fairly well last night when he had told them that he couldn't tell them the reason that he had received his detention. They were his friends and they trusted his opinion. However, he didn't believe that the news about his marriage contract would blow over as easily as that had done. They would rather hear it from him than from another source, which was why he was planning on telling them all about it at breakfast before the morning news arrived.

Knowing that he was only delaying the inevitable, Antares slowly rose from his bed.

Grabbing his wand from his bedside table, Antares quickly changed into his workout clothes with the flick of the wrist. Making sure he had everything he needed for the upcoming courting, he grabbed his book bag from the end of his bed, donned his favourite cloak and exited his dormitory.

After silently walking through the dark and desolate common room and out passed the portrait of Salazar Slytherin, where he then proceeded to make his way down to the Quidditch pitch for his morning exercise.

Outside was the usual weather for this time of the morning in Scotland, mostly wet and cold with the sun hiding safely behind the various mountains that surrounded Hogwarts.

Placing his bag on one of the seats, he took off his cloak and placed it on top of his bag. Antares took a few moments to stretch before he took off at a brisk pace around the frosted field.

An hour and a half passed as he continued to run laps around the Quidditch pitch, pushing his body to the absolute limit as he tried to forget about his day ahead. By the time he was finished he was gasping for breath and drenched from head-to-toe in sweat.

_"__Tempus" _cast Antares after picking up his wand from within his robe.

When his spell revealed that it was already quarter to eight, Antares quickly chucked on his robe, put his wand in his inner pocket and slung his bag over his should. He then set off at a brisk pace, but not in the direction of the castle. His next destination was the Owlery.

It didn't take long before Antares had crossed the grounds from the Quidditch pitch towards the west tower of Hogwarts, where the Owlery was located.

The Hogwarts Owlery was a large circular tower that was made out roughly carved stone. A rough dirt footpath led to up to the base of the tower. It had windows with no glass in them so that the owls could come and go freely and played home to over 400 owls.

Walking up the dirt path, Antares stood at the base of the Owlery. There was no door to the building so he just entered and began to climb the circular stairs to the top. Walls upon walls of owls could be seen as he made his way towards the top. Barn Owls, Eagle Owls, Grey Owls, Tawny Owls and Brown Owls of all shapes and size lined the walls of the circular building.

When he got to the top he had to place a hand over his face to stop the intense smell of owl shit from making him gag. The floor was covered in what looked like three inches of owl shit, dried grass and the carcasses of various dead animals.

Withdrawing his wand, he quickly cast a banishing charm on the excrement and other foul smelling things in the room. He then cast an airfreshening charm that made the whole room smell like vanilla.

Seeing as that problem was solved, he looked around the large circular room to find his personal owl. Not seeing him anywhere amongst the several dozen that where located at the top of the tower, he put his fingers in his mouth and whistled a specific tune very loudly.

Within moments a large black owl came soaring through one of the open windows, circling the room a few times before landing on Antares' outstretched arm.

"It's been too long, Aquila" murmured Antares as he stroked his owl's feathers.

Aquila had been a gift from his family when he had received is Hogwarts letter. He was a completely black eagle owl that had piercing gold eyes and a very sharp curved beak. A chain hung around his neck with two metal tags on it, one with his name and registration number, and the other was the black family crest.

Putting his free hand in his robe pocket, Antares pulled out a black envelope and a magically shrunken package.

"I've got a task for you old friend. I need you to bring this to the great hall in about 30 minutes. Can you do that for me?" asked Antares of his faithful companion.

Aquila nodded his head in the affirmative, nipping his owners finger affectionately.

"Looks like somebody's getting extra mice tomorrow" said Antares as he tied the packages to Aquila's outstretched leg.

Once everything was done, he walked Aquila to an empty perch on the wall and placed him upon it.

Giving his faithful pet one last scratch behind the ears, Antares began to descend the stairs. 'Breakfast is going to be an interesting affair' thought Antares as he made his way to the bottom of the stairs and set off towards the castle.

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Sorry for the short chapter guys. More parts of chapter 9 to come soon. There is a lot to happen in this chapter and this was just the intro into the good stuff. Please Review :)


	14. Chapter 9 - Part 2

A/N

Hey guys, Check out my tumblr link on my profile to see images of all of my characters.

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Chapter 9 – Let the Courting Commence [Pt.2]

Antares ate his breakfast in silence as he sat at the Slytherin house table. He was internally very nervous at what was about to happen within the next ten minutes. To his left sat his best friend Xavier Nott, and on his right sat Caroline Parkinson. Tristan and Jasper sat across from them, enjoying their hearty English breakfast. Sophia was nowhere to be seen.

Antares had no idea where his female best friend was. Having come straight to breakfast from the Owlery he had no way of knowing if she was still in her dorm or not. The others hadn't heard from her either.

"I have an announcement to make" declared Antares his friends, placing his knife and fork down upon his empty plate.

They turned to him with eyebrows raised. It was very unlike Antares to announce to them that he had something to say. He would usually just come outright and say what he was thinking.

"Over the holidays my father visited me in my bedroom. He informed me that he had something to tell me that would change my life dramatically. He informed me that he and my mother had seen fit to enter me into a . . marriage contract"

His friends (minus Jasper) all had looks of extreme shock written across their faces. They all looked like they wanted to ask him various questions, yet it was Caroline who was first to break the silence.

"Well don't keep us in suspense. Tell us who the future Lady Black is going to be"

"Helena Greengrass from Ravenclaw" replied Antares.

"She's quiet the looker Antares. At least you have that going for you" commented Tristan with a cheeky grin.

"How do you feel about all of this Ares?" asked Xavier, using his friends nickname for the first time in ages.

"Truthfully, I don't rightly know. I think that I've come to terms with it over the last few weeks, but only time will tell" replied Antares to his friend with a small smile, knowing that his best friend was only looking out for his interests.

"Have you told Sophia yet?" Caroline asked as she took a sip of her coffee, "She has the right to know that you are promised to another. You owe her that much at least.".

"I have not" admitted Antares in a small voice, "I was hoping she was here so that I could tell all of you at once. Perhaps it is better that she isn't here so that I can talk to her about it in private".

"I suspect that your family is doing things the traditional way. When does the Courting ceremony begin?" asked Jasper, who up until this point had remained silent.

"Today actually. By my calculations Aquila should be delivering the first gift to the Ravenclaw table any minute now" replied Antares.

As if by some form of divine intervention, seconds after Antares had finished speaking hundreds of owls flew through the open windows and into the great all. All of them carrying parcels and newspapers of various shapes and sizes.

Antares (and his friends) attention turned towards the Ravenclaw table, where Aquila could be seen landing right beside Helena Greengrass.

**Helena's POV**

Helena Greengrass had been having a rather pleasant time enjoying the peace and quiet (most of her housemates were already occupying the library), when her breakfast had been interrupted by a black eagle owl landing right beside her.

The eagle owl bowed its head towards her, before sticking out its left leg where a black letter and a parcel where attached.

"Is that for me?" Helena asked of the bird with a puzzled expression on her face.

Aquila nodded his head.

Placing her knife and fork down, she stroked the owl behind ear before untying both the letter and gift from the owl's leg.

Seeing as his job was done, Aquila grabbed a piece of bacon from Helena's plate with his beak and flew off towards the exit along with the other owls.

Moving her plate to the side, she placed the gift and letter in front of her. She decided to read the letter first so that she could find out who the gift and letter where from. Picking up the black envelope, she marvelled at the beauty and simplicity of it. The envelope was a rich black colour made of a thick card-like parchment that had her name written elegantly in silver ink. Turning it over revealed who the sender was.

The Black Family crest (three black ravens, a flexed arm wielding a wand and the words 'toujurs pur' upon a shield of red, blue and white) was embossed upon silver candle wax, holding the envelope closed from prying eyes.

Helena's heart began to beat faster and a light blush rose to her cheeks as she realised what the contents of the letter most likely contained.

With slightly trembling fingers she broke the wax seal and opened the envelope. Inside contained a single sheet of thick white parchment that was folded in two.

Placing the envelope off to the side, she opened the folded parchment.

Written in silver ink was half a page of beautifully written handwriting. The writing curled this way and that in an effortless display of penmanship and stayed in neat straight lines despite the lack of ruled lines.

Yet the writing whilst beautiful wasn't what she was interested in. It was the meaning behind the words that she really wanted to hear. So she composed herself and began to read.

_Dear Lady Greengrass,_

_May I say that I am truly sorry that you have found yourself in such a situation due to the machinations of our parents. I am unaware if you knew about our arranged marriage before the summer holidays, or that you agreed to it, but I can assure you that I did not. When my father informed me that he and my mother had entered me into a marriage contract with yourself I was quiet taken aback. Growing up in a traditional pureblood home I knew it was a distinct possibility that I may one day be entered into a marriage contract, but until recently I had never thought that it would actually come to pass. Over the last few weeks I have come to terms with the fact that you and I will one day raise a family together. I hope that you too have thought about this as long and hard as I have. If we are to be forced together because our magic and by extension our life depends on it, then I want to give our relationship all the dedication it deserves. I don't want to wake up in 80 years from now as a vindictive old man because we didn't give it our best to fall in love with one another. What I'm saying is that I am willing to give us a chance if you are willing to do the same. I want to spend the rest of my life with someone I love and someone who loves me in return, and I hope that person will one day be you. Seeing as we haven't exactly met, let me be the first to introduce myself. My name is Antares Orion Black. I am 16 years old and am a pureblood wizard. I enjoy reading, exercising and hunting. My friends and family are the most important thing in my life, one thing I despise is tomatoes. I know that courting is a not usually undertaken in modern times but my family believed that it would help us get to know one another. As such I will be unable to see or speak to you for at least a month, I hope this doesn't displease you and that you will send me a response whenever I owl you, this way we can get to know each other and hopefully bond before the courting comes to a close. Attached to this letter is the first gift of many, I hope that you find it worthy enough for someone as beautiful as you. _

_Eagerly awaiting you reply,_

_Antares Orion Black_

A single tear rolled down Helena's bright red face as Antares letter came to a close, the beauty of it surprising her beyond belief. Turning towards the Slytherin table she saw that her future husband was carefully watching her reaction to his letter. As she turned to his direction her warm brown eyes locked with his intelligent grey ones, and for the briefest of moments they each shared a small smile that even they didn't know the meaning of.

Antares nodded to her before turning his attention back to his friends. It was in this moment that all the stress and anxiety from the previous two weeks was suddenly lifted from her shoulders. Gone was the fear that her husband was going to be someone that didn't even want to bother with her. Gone was the fear that she was going to live a loveless marriage of depression and despair. And all it had taken to waylay her fears was a lovely worded letter and a charming smile from a handsome boy across the hall.

Smiling brightly to herself she wiped her cheeks with the corner of her robes before turning her attention to the small package that had remained forgotten until now.

The package was roughly 8 inches in length and two inches wide, rectangular in shape and wrapped up in fine silver wrapping paper. After tearing the paper from the rectangular box, she was greeted with a dark blue box.

Lifting the top half of the box from the bottom half, she gasped loudly at what she saw.

A mesmerising quill of silver, black and green and topped with a gold tip lay inside. It wasn't just any old pretty quill with a gold tip though. The special thing about it, and the reason she had gasped, was the fact that the quill was made from the tale of the very rare Irish Phoenix, more commonly known as the Augurey. The inquisitive side of her wanted to know how Antares had procured such an item, but later reminded herself that most Blacks had more gold then sense.

Knowing that her future husband would most likely want a response as fast as possible, she packed up her new quill, grabbed her letter and book bag and made her way in the direction of her common room. A large smile on her pretty face present the entire way.

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Here you go guys :) This part of chapter nine literally wrote itself. I enjoyed it much more than the previous chapter I posted. More parts of chapter 9 coming soon. Please Review.


	15. Chapter 9 - Part 3

Chapter 9 – Let the Courting Commence [Pt.3]

**Lily's POV**

Lily's eyes roamed the length of the Slytherin table as she sat amongst her friends at the Gryffindor table, searching the many students clad in silver and green for a certain individual. She

Ever since their conversation on the Hogwarts express she had been looking forward to her tutoring lessons with the eldest Black. He was all she could think about since her arrival back at Hogwarts.

From the start of her third year she had developed a slight crush on the heir to Black Family. He had all the characteristics of his younger brother Sirius, yet was studious, smart, intelligent, incredibly good looking and least of all mature.

In the two years that had passed since they had first met outside the Transfiguration corridor, they hadn't spoken more than a word to each other. Being a year apart age wise and in two completely different houses meant there wasn't much need for them to interact with one another.

She didn't know if what she felt for him was love or lust. But she was certain that whatever her feelings were, Antares didn't feel the same way.

She knew that if they could just spend some time alone together then she could really get to know Antares for who he was, and not for who he appeared to be. His act on the train hadn't fooled her one for a second. She knew that beneath the tough guy, pureblood-mania exterior that he projected to the world, he wasn't as bad as he portrayed himself to be.

It was for this reason that she had lied to him about needing his help with her Arithmancy homework. She had used the excuse of needing his help so that they would she could spend some time alone with the eldest black, free from the prying eyes of either of their friends and housemates.

Thinking about Antares, Lily's eyes lit up as her crush finally entered the great hall, followed closely by his entourage of pureblood fanatics. Sophia Wilkes absence didn't go unnoticed.

For the rest of breakfast she continued to keep an eye on the Slytherin table. She noticed how Antares only ate fruit and porridge and avoided any of the fried and processed foods. She noticed the way he interacted with his friends. How his smile or grin actually reached his eyes unlike the fake smile he usually wore in the presence of others. But most of all she noticed how every so often his eyes would look towards the sky before turning back in the direction of his friends.

It wasn't until the mail owls descended into the great hall that she found out what he was keeping an eye on. A large midnight black eagle-owl with a black envelope and small package attached to its leg had just entered the great hall with hundreds of other owls, its amongst the many others that littered the sky.

The beautiful didn't landed beside Antares at the Slytherin table as she had thought it would, but instead had glided down to sit beside Helena Greengrass at the Ravenclaw table.

Aquila wasn't the only one who had gained Lily's attention though. The Half-bloods and Purebloods of the room had obviously recognised the significance of the black envelope and package that Aquila was carrying. Within seconds the Great Hall was filled with hushed conversation, with the most common pressing question being the identity of the sender.

Not understanding what all the commotion was about, she decided to ask someone who would.

"What's with all the commotion? Why is everyone so worked up over an envelope?"

"That isn't just any old envelope -" replied Sirius through a mouthful of bacon, "It's a courting envelope".

"A what envelope" asked a confused Lily as she turned to face him.

"A courting envelope" interjected James Potter from beside Sirius.

Seeing that she still looked confused, James decided to elaborate.

"It's an ancient pureblood tradition dating back to the 13th century. It's hardly used in today's society but there are still some families that do practice the old ways"

"When a witch and wizard are entered into a marriage contract, they usually undertake something known as a courting. The courting is a month long period that is used to show the world that the wizard is a fit match for his betrothed. The groom-to-be is expected to shower his betrothed with various gifts, heroic deeds-of-valour and other declarations of devotion. That black envelope that everyone is discussing signals the first day of a courting" explained James as he took a sip of his pumpkin juice, smiling at his crush from behind his goblet.

"I wonder who it's from" replied Lily, now very curious about all of this courting business. Even after five years of being in the wizarding world, some things still managed to surprise, and confuse, her. This new information definitely deserved a visit to the library. No doubt Potter had only given her a very brief overview on the subject.

"Oh that's easy, It's from my brother" said Sirius nonchalantly, before helping himself to his second helping of eggs and bacon.

"Oh" said Lily, a look of shock covered her features.

"Yeah. Happened over the summer hols. Helena's gorgeous, there's no doubt about that" Sirius rambled on, "but I'm honestly glad it isn't me who has to get married, have children and all that other bloody nonsense, - ".

Lily didn't hear any more of what Sirius said as she had risen from her seat, grabbed her things and ran off towards the direction of the Great Halls exit, leaving a stunned Sirius and James in her wake.

A million thoughts ran through her mind as she hugged her book bag to her chest, climbing the castles stairs two at a time.

It wasn't until she had lost herself in a corridor on the sixth floor that she finally stopped running and collapsed against the stone wall, her slim body sliding down the wall until she was sitting on the floor. A single tear rolled slowly down her cheek, and within minutes her slim body was racked with sobs as she began to cry.

It was here that she spent most of her day, silent and deep in though as she realized that everything she had wanted would never come to pass. And so she cried. She cried until her throat was sore and her eyes where red and bloodshot. She cried until she couldn't cry no more, and when that finally happened the day had already passed and dinner was just about to begin.


	16. Chapter 9 - Part 4

Chapter 9 – Let the Courting Commence [Pt.4]

**Normal POV**

"ugh, just what I needed" mumbled Antares as he finished reading Professor Slughorns note.

'_\- as such I have managed to work your punishment down to covering another student's prefect duties. Please make sure to meet Ms. Evans in the Great Hall at precisely 9:30 PM tomorrow for patrol duty.'_

After he had shared his intimate moment with Helena and watched her gorgeous bum make its way from the Great Hall, he had returned his attention back to his own table, where Xavier was holding out his prefect schedule for the year.

It was with his prefect schedule that he had received Professor Slughorns note regarding his punishment for getting out of his detention with Professor Graves.

It was suspiciously uncanny how he was partnered with the one prefect he didn't want to be partnered with. Especially in a time when his life was beginning to get increasingly stressful. Knowing that thinking about the problem only made his mood miserable, he decided to try and avoid thinking about how awkward tomorrow's patrol was going to be.

Seeing his friends begin to stand up and get ready to leave for class, Antares swigged down the last of his tea and followed suit.

"Who's got Ancient Runes with Gibbs?" he asked his friends as they walked towards the halls exit.

"Just you and me old friend, the others all have Care of Magical Creatures" replied Xavier, shooting Antares a grin as Caroline, Jasper and Tristan waved goodbye and turned towards the entrance hall.

"Just like the old times huh Xav, just you and me against the world" said Antares, returning the grin with one of his own.

For a while the both of them walked in a comfortable silence. Neither of them saying anything as they climbed the ever changing staircases of Hogwarts.

"So, a marriage contract huh" commented Xavier after a while, "Bloody hell Ares".

"I know Xav, I know. But it was hardly my decision to make" returned Antares.

"I guess you're right" agreed Xavier.

Being a pureblood heir himself he knew that if Antares' parents wanted him to marry someone, then there was basically nothing that he could do in order to stop them. He was just grateful that his parents hadn't done the same to him.

"I thought you would have told me about it before the others at least, me being your best friend and all".

"Look Xav -" said Antares, coming to an abrupt stop in the middle of the sixth floor corridor.

"You've been my best friend for most of my life. We've been through thick and thin together and you've had my back more times than I can count. After everything we've been through, I count you as a brother in the same way that Sirius and Regulus are my actual brothers. I didn't tell you, or anyone else for that matter, because I myself haven't completely come to terms that my future has been set for me. Hell, I haven't even told Sophia yet and me and her share everything together, if you know what I mean" Antares confessed honestly to his oldest and dearest friend.

Xavier stood dumbfounded as Antares referred to him as family. For all the time that he had known Antares he had never before seen him express his motions with such honesty and straightforwardness. He had always known Antares feelings about him, as he too felt the same way. He wasn't talking about homosexual or any other type of romantic feelings, but rather feelings of trust and companionship that neither of them had felt whilst growing up in their parent's households. He guessed that this marriage contract ordeal was effecting Antares more than he let on. So Xavier did something he hadn't done since they were children, he embraced his best friend in a large hug.

"Thank you Antares, for everything" whispered Xavier into Antares's shoulder.

"No problem Xav," laughed Antares, "now remove yourself before someone see's us and mistakes us for a couple of queers".

Xavier quickly jumped back, a large smile on his face.

"Now let's hurry up before we're late for class" said Antares as he set off towards the Ancient Runes classroom.

Xavier just stood there grinning stupidly to himself for several moments. When he finally realised that Antares was already halfway up the corridor, he took off after him at a very fast pace.

_**Slytherin Dorms, Hogwarts (Tuesday 2**__**nd**__** of September, 1974)**_

Antares entered the Slytherin Common room to the sound of silence. It wasn't that the common room was empty, in fact it was quite the opposite. It was more to the fact that everyone's conversation had abruptly stopped the moment he had entered the room.

Being the intelligent man that he was, Antares assumed that this was due to one of two things. Either everything in the world revolved around him and his housemates were showcasing their submissive nature by being silent; or they were being quiet because he was somehow in trouble and they were giving him their one-minute of silence early.

When he spotted a clearly enraged Sophia Wilkes charging towards him, he somehow knew it was the latter.

Sophia didn't say anything as she grabbed him by the arm and begun to literally drag him towards his room. Antares looked to his housemates for some type of help but all he received were blank stares and shrugged shoulders.

Having a rough idea what Sophia wanted to discuss Antares didn't offer much resistance as he was forcibly removed from the common room, dragged down the corridor and roughly shoved into Sophia's' bedroom.

"What the hell Black!" shouted Sophia angrily as soon as she had closed the door.

"I didn't want this Sophia," said Antares, "Don't make me out to be the guilty party here. You know our customs as well as any of us. It was beyond my control and you know it".

"Like fuck it is. You could have done something! Anything!" she screamed at him loudly, "If you didn't want this than you would have found a way around it. But you didn't. You probably didn't even give it a second thought before you signed your life away."

"What was I to do Sophia!" shouted Antares, anger creeping into his voice.

"Was I to refuse my father's orders, to be cast from my family and everything I know. All because they choose who I am to spend the rest of my life with and I did not. I would never betray my family like that. Not for you. Not for anyone."

Sophia's face lost its angry expression as she realized what Antares said was true. In her anger induced state she had forgotten that until he turned 17, his parents had full control over any legal matters that concerned him. She also knew that his family, and his family's reputation, meant the world to him. She knew that he would never do anything that would make his family look bad in the eyes of the wizarding world, even if that meant sacrificing his own happiness.

"I thought we had something special Antares. That we were friend's. That our nights together meant more to you than just a casual fuck. Apparently I was wrong" said Sophia in a quiet voice.

Antares heart broke as he heard the hurt in her voice. To see one of his dearest friends in such emotional pain was a hard thing to witness. But to be the cause of her pain was making him sick to his stomach.

Sophia had been his good friend for many years. She, like Xavier, had been with him through the thick and thin. Never once complaining. Never once questioning his leadership when he got them into a particular sticky situation. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve to be treated second best because a contract stipulated they would never be together. He needed to fix this, and fast. He needed to make things right. If not for his sake, then for Sophia's. He owed her that much at the very least.

"We do have something special Soph" he whispered, taking a step forward and grasping her small delicate hand in his own.

"You mean more to me then you could ever possibly know. Sure our arrangement of casual sex was an added bonus, but after the first few times I knew our relationship was deeper than a sex. Your one of the only people in the world who knows me, and I mean actually know me. Not the façade version that I portray to the rest of the wizarding world. With you I don't have to worry about hiding who I am. I don't have to worry about acting like the perfect pureblood heir all the time. With you I can be the real me. The me that enjoys your soft embrace and warm smile. The me that wakes up next to you in the morning and tries to remember how I met someone as perfect as you. Yet despite my feelings, I can't change the fact that I am to be married to Helena Greengrass. Do I love her? No. Do I like the fact that she is to be my wife? Of course not. Would I prefer it was your name on the marriage contract and not hers? Of course I would. And it kills me inside to see you hurting when I know that there's nothing I can do to make your pain go away. So I'm sorry Sophia. I'm sorry for anything I ever did or ever said to make the smile fall from your face. I'm sorry that I'm the reason for your pain. But most of all I'm sorry that you broke my heart without even meaning to".

As he said this Antares' voice became thick with raw emotion, for everything he was saying was true. Only now, when he was laying everything on the table, did he realize that he had developed feelings for his best friend. Up until this point he had never actually considered his feelings for his female best friend. For everything he had said to her was one hundred percent true. It amazed him how someone as smart as him hadn't seen what was right in front of him all along.

"You really mean it, don't you?" said Sophia as tears began to roll down her cheeks as Antares poured his heart out to her.

"Of course"

His response seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back. As the words left his lips Antares found himself with a lap full of sobbing women. For what seemed like an age he held her close to him, hugging her, comforting her. Doing whatever he could to console the woman that would never be his. It wasn't until his legs where numb and aching that he realised that she had fallen asleep in his lap.

Lifting her up slowly, Antares helped her over to her bed. He tucked her in gently before placing a kiss atop her sleeping head. Smiling sadly down at her, he turned off her light with a flick of his wand and exited her bedroom.

_**Antares Bedroom, Slytherin Dorms**_

Antares sighed heavily as he finally crawled into his bed. The day had been one long and emotional day. Never before had he felt both physically and mentally drained for no other reason than having to engage with awkward talks and exhausting conversations. Now that practically the whole school new about his marriage contract to Helena Greengrass, he could only hope that tomorrow everything went back to the way it was.

Staring up at the ceiling, Antares thought about his conversation with Sophia. Although he had finally realized his feelings for Sophia, it hadn't changed anything where his marriage contract was concerned. He would still have to marry Helena and there was nothing he could do about it.

Knowing that his feelings for Sophia needed to be thought about when he had a clear mind, he implemented his Occlumency skills to bury his thoughts relating to his best friend until a time where he wasn't drop-dead tired. This was a skill he had perfected over the last several years and had saved his piece of mind more times than he could count.

A month. That was how long it would be until he was finally able to meet his betrothed for the first time. He didn't know what to think about their meeting but he did know that he wouldn't be able to abstain from sex for that long. Hell, he didn't even know how long it would be before he did actually get to sleep with his future wife. He assumed that Helena would want to abide exactly by the courting rules, so he guessed a few years at the very least.

If he was grateful for one thing about this whole, it was that his betrothal contract was worded in a way that allowed him to have sex up until the day he was married.

The only problem he had was finding someone to satisfy his needs with. After their conversation tonight he hardly believed that Sophia was going to be up for the task. His feelings for her and her feelings for him couldn't take another beating like it had tonight.

No doubt he could find many willing and horny witches in any of the Hogwarts houses, but now that they knew he was in a marriage contract it cause complications if anyone found out about his unfaithfulness to his bride-to-be. What he needed was someone who only wanted to have sex with him without the need for a personal relationship, was discrete about their encounters, but was most importantly incredibly good looking.

It was with these thoughts in mind that Antares's exhaustion began to catch up with him, his eyes becoming harder and harder to remain open. Knowing that he was fighting a losing battle, he decided to stop resisting the inevitable and gave in to his tiredness, and was actually very thankful when sleep finally embraced him.


	17. Chapter 10 - Part 1

Chapter 10 - [Pt.1]

Antares awoke to the sound of someone knocking on his door. Hoping they would get the message and go away, he ignored them, burying his head under his pillows as he tried to go back to sleep. He was out of luck it seemed, for the person knocking only redoubled their efforts at gaining his attention.

Somehow he knew that he wasn't going to be left alone. So instead of avoiding the inevitable, he sat up and rubbed the sleep from out of his eyes. Once he was awake enough he told the person at his door to enter.

Sophia emerged from the other side of the door. Dressed in her usual Hogwarts uniform of a white buttoned shirt, charcoal-grey knitted V-neck with matching skirt, silver and green tie and finished with a plain black robe emblazoned with the Hogwarts crest. The only makeup she wore was a light pink lipstick that contrasted perfectly with her dark locks, which she wore down and framed her face beautifully.

"Took you long enough. I must have been knocking for at least five minutes" exclaimed Sophia as she stepped in his room.

"I was sleeping" shrugged Antares.

"I gathered as much. Though I thought you would have been up and about by non. When I noticed you weren't in the room I thought I better come and check on you. Your usually up before the rest of us."

"Shit! Shit! Shit! What time is it?" cursed Antares as he threw back his blanket and jumped out of bed.

"Quarter past Eight" replied Sophia, hiding her grin behind her hand as Antares's manhood was brought into view, swinging this way and that as he raced around his room trying to throw on his school clothes in nothing but his skin.

"I must have been more exhausted last night then I thought. I haven't overslept in years. I guess I'll have to swing by the kitchens for something to eat, and I still have to get up to the Owlery to send this betrothal gift to Helena. I tell ya, ever since I found out about that marriage contract my life has been nothing like it used to be" explained Antares he buttoned up his shirt.

Once he was finished dressing, he grabbed his wand and book bag and made to exit his room. Sophia stopped him in his tracks by placing a hand on his arm. He turned to her with eyebrows raised.

"Before you go, I have some things that I have to get off my chest, about last night" she said quietly as she looked him in the eyes.

Something about that look told him that what she had to say was important. So despite the many things he had to do that morning, he placed his book bag back on the floor and took a seat on the edge of his bed.

"I know that things can't be the way they used to be Antares, you being betrothed to Greengrass and whatnot. But I don't want things to get awkward between us because of this. I love and respect you too much to get in the way of your marriage contract, and no matter how much I know it will hurt me to see you with another woman at you side, I truly wish the best for you and Helena's future. What I'm trying to say … Is that I want us to continue being best friends, like it was before you found out you were to be married. Obviously we can't partake in casual sex anymore, but aside from that I want absolutely nothing to change between us. Our feeling for each other won't change overnight, or at all even, but I refuse to spend my life longing for something that will never be mine. I hope you can understand where I'm coming from" said Sophia in a small voice, her eyes searching his for some type of clue as to what he was thinking.

"You right Soph," said Antares as he stood up, "Things will never be the same between us, not like it was before at any rate. But like you said that doesn't mean things have to change completely between us. I'm still me and your still you, none of that has changed. Just because we have feelings for each other that we are unable to act upon doesn't mean we can't still be friends. No doubt it will be difficult, seeing each other with someone else and not being able to do a thing about it, but we've been through some things together and I'm sure we are more than capable of handling this as well".

As he finished talking Antares enveloped Sophia in hug, his large arms wrapping around her much smaller frame with ease.

They stayed locked in each other's arms for several moments, both of them trying to convey their feelings without nothing but their bodies. Antares buried his face in her hair, smelling her tantalising scent of vanilla and rosewood for perhaps the last time.

He would miss her. Probably more than he would care to admit. Their relationship had been as perfect as it could have been, neither one of them expecting anything from the other. It had been easy being with her, for nothing was expected of him when he was in her presence. No heir duties, no school duties, nothing at all. He was just Antares and she was just Sophia, two good looking teenagers who were good friends and had used each for sexual pleasure, only to end up having feelings for each other that neither one of them could explain. But all of that was now gone. His fathers – and by extension his mother's – actions had seen to that.

'Perhaps in a different life thing could have been different' thought Antares. Perhaps he could have married Sophia, had a couple kids and lead a content and happy life. But he was realist, and living in a world of possibilities and what-ifs was something he would never dare indulge in.

"Thanks for being so understanding Antares. Somehow I know things won't be so bad" whispered Sophia into the crook of his neck.

"Please, It's you who I should be thanking, for being there for me in more ways than you could possibly imagine" replied Antares as he finally released her from his embrace.

When he stepped back he was very sad to see a lone tear roll down her perfectly sculptured cheek. Raising his hand to her face he gently wiped it away with the pad of his thumb. She smiled sadly at him, and he returned it with a small smile of his own.

Both of them knew that this was it. It was sad because the both of them understood that from this day forward, nothing would ever be the same again. It was for this very reason that Antares bent forward and captured her pink lips in one final kiss.

Their kiss wasn't the passionate filled, tongue-battle, that it usually was. Instead it was something much much more than that. It was a lover's kiss. Filled with every fibre of their beings as they shared their final kiss together. Eventually, with much regret on both sides, they pulled apart from one another.

They said no more on the subject after that. For what more could they say that hadn't already been said to each other in that kiss.

"I really should get going, before I'm late for class" said Antares as he once more picked up his things.

"What subject do we have first?" he asked as they left his room.

"Double History of Magic with Binns" replied Sophia, once more back to her regular self.

"Excellent," grinned Antares, "Binns won't mind too much if I show up to class a bit late. I don't know why but for some reason he's always been very lenient when it comes to me".

The two of them entered the now empty common room, the rest of their classmates already having gone down to breakfast.

The two of them parted ways on the way up to the Great Hall, Antares turning towards the Entrance Hall and Sophia to the Slytherin table for Breakfast.

The Hogwarts grounds were cold and the sky grey as Antares walked across the frozen fields and once more made his way towards the Owlery.

Once he was standing at the top of the building, he withdrew Helena's second courting gift – this time without a letter – and walked over to were Aquila was perched.

"How've you been boy?" asked Antares as he scratched Aquila behind his right ear.

Aquila's only response was a half-hearted glare and a tiny bob of his head forward, as if to say he had been okay.

"I've got another task for you, same as yesterday in fact" said Antares as he brought Helena's gift into view.

At this news Aquila seemed to perk up and Antares couldn't help but grin as his owl suddenly became animated, eagerly holding out his leg for the parcel.

Tying the small package to his leg and giving him the instructions, Antares gave Aquila one last scratch behind the ear before descending the stairs and making his way back to the castle.

When he did get back to the castle, he made a quick detour to the kitchen for some breakfast. The house-elves were more than happy to help and had no issue with a student being somewhere they weren't supposed to be.

Antares loved house-elves. Not in an affectionate way, no, he thought they were vile and disgusting little creatures. But he was unable to deny that they were dead useful when it came to menial tasks. He especially liked how submissive they were, always so ready and eager to please. They were also surprisingly powerful when it came to magic, able to perform great feats of magic when the time came for it. The things he could accomplish with an army of House Elves made him positively giddy at the thought.

After having a quick bite to eat, Antares finally made his way to his History of Magic Class. Binns had no problem with him being late. What followed was two-hours of Binn's droning on and on about the Goblin rebellions of 1752, the ghost professors voice managing to put half the class asleep before the class was halfway over.

"Well that was as mind-numbingly boring as I remember it being" said Antares to Sophia and Xavier as they exited the History of Magic classroom.

Xavier nodded in agreement, "Is it just me or does Binn actually get more boring the longer he talks. I swear with the amount of money we pay for tuition they could at least give us a competent teacher".

"Anyway," said Antares, "I'll catch up with you guys after lunch. I've got some business that I need to take care of".

Xavier and Sophia both gave him questioning looks, but he didn't allaborate further and instead set off in the direction of the Library.


	18. Chapter 10 - Part 2

Chapter 10 – Pt. 2

The Hogwarts Library was one of Antares's favourite places. With its large rows of ancient texts and the overwhelming smell of aged parchment, it reminded him of his own personal library at Grimmauld Place. It was a place where he could usually study in peace, away from the disturbing chitter-chatter of the common room. Xavier, Sophia and Caroline could usually be found with him but more often than not he could be found tucked behind some dusty old tome at the back of the library, enjoying nobody's companying but his own.

But his visit to the library today wasn't for his pleasure, but rather to find someone that he thought might be able to help him with his little sex issue. He had heard from one of her housemates that this was the place where she could most likely be found.

Walking straight down the middle of the library, Antares quietly scanned the rows of dusty, heavily-packed, shelves of ancient books, making sure he didn't accidentally overlook the person he was searching for.

To anybody who didn't know the library as well as he did, they might have given up after 10 minutes of searching without any sign of what they were looking for. But Antares knew the Library like the back of his hand, knowing every hidey hole and hidden alcove that there was to know.

After he didn't find her in any of the isles, nor the alcoves and other common hiding spots, he went to the last place he could think of. A place that most students didn't even know existed.

Making sure that he wasn't being followed, Antares made his way to the back of the library. He passed what seemed like hundreds of bookshelves, all of them made out of a rich dark wood and covered in thick layers of dust.

It wasn't until he was at the very back of the library that he finally came to a stop. In front of him stood a shelf that looked identical to all the other bookshelves. But unlike the other shelfs, this one held a secret that very few people knew about.

Stepping closer to the shelf, Antares began to count in his head. One. Two. Three. Four. He stopped here and put his hand one the fourth tome from the left.

The tome that he held between his fingers was dark red in colour and was suspiciously covered in less dust than the others that surrounded it. Someone had been here, and recently at that.

Checking his left, and then his right to make sure nobody was around, Antares quickly pulled the book all the way forward. As he removed his hand from the book, the shelf began to swing forward as if it was on some type of magical hinge.

Antares smirked as he quickly entered the room that had just been revealed, the bookshelf closing behind him a few seconds later.

The room he had entered couldn't really be called a room. It was perhaps a meter and a half long by a meter and a half wide and was made entirely out of some type of grey stone. Across from him stood a large wooden door, dark red in colour with a large brass handle.

Having been here multiple times in the past, Antares had no reservations about turning the handle and entering the room beyond.

A large circular room lay on the side of the door. Bookshelves lined the entire wall from left to right. A roaring fire could be found on the left side of the room, with several leather armchairs sitting in front of it. A brown shag carpet covered the entirety of the room.

The room wasn't empty however. For seated in one of the comfortable leather armchairs beside the fireplace with a book in her lap was the very person he had been searching for. Seeing as she hadn't looked up from her book, Antares could only assume that she hadn't noticed his presence. He took this time to silently assess the women who he would hopefully be having sex with very soon.

Maxine Harrison was a sixth grade Hufflepuff half-blood witch of mixed English and Chinese descent. She was of an average height, had amazingly smooth honey coloured skin and long, lustrous dark-black hair that was tied back in a ponytail, and reached to just below her shoulder blades. Her face was oval shaped and was very beautiful, sporting a small nose, lush full lips and almond-shaped eyes that where a beautiful hazel in colour. Overall, she was one beautiful woman.

"Good afternoon, Maxine"

Maxine looked up from her book with a confused expression on her face.

"Black?" she said, "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you of course. Quiet the effort it was as well, you're not an easy person to find. You're lucky that you're not the only person that knows about this place" replied Antares, walking into the room and taking the seat across from her.

"But why were you looking for me? To my knowledge we've never actually met before" said Maxine, closing her book and sitting up in her chair.

"There's a first time for everything I guess. I always enjoy meeting pretty ladies such as yourself" replied Antares with a smile.

"What do you want Black? No doubt theirs something that you want from me. People like you don't just make new friends without wanting something in return. So what is it that you want from me?" said Maxine, rolling her eyes at his obviously flirting. Although she couldn't completely conceal her emotions as her lips curved ever so slightly.

"oh how you wound me so" said Antares dramatically, one hand raised to his forehead.

"Quit it Black!" she warned.

"Okay, Okay. I'll get to the point" replied Antares, his expression becoming serious as he sat up straighter in his seat.

"I have a proposition for you. A very lucrative proposition"

"What type of proposition?" asked Maxine, her curiosity getting the best of her.

'Now for the hard part' thought Antares to himself, 'convincing someone I've just met for the first time to have sex with me for money'.

Antares wasn't stupid however. He knew that if he just outright asked her to have sex with him for an insane amount of gold that should most likely say no. For what self-respecting Witch would say yes to such an outrageous proposal from somebody that had only just met.

So being the cunning Slytherin he was, Antares had made sure to do his homework on his intended target. If all went according to plan, he would be leaving this room a very happy man. If things didn't go as well as he hoped, well then he could always resort to a memory charm.

"As you may or may not have heard, I have been entered into a Betrothal Contract with Helena Greengrass and as such have to marry her before my 21st Birthday" said Antares.

"Of course I did, it's the only topic the whole school is talking about" replied Maxine.

"Well," continued Antares, "you being aware of the old ways should know what this contract means for me. If you don't, then let me enlighten you. It means I'm not allowed sexual relations with anyone but her".

"And this has something to do with me because …" asked Maxine, not seeing how Blacks sex life was any concern of hers.

"But that bylaw doesn't come into effect until after I'm married," continued Antares as if she hadn't spoken at all, "which means that I'm allowed to have sex with anyone I want until the day that I am actually married. Which is a very good thing seeing as I very much enjoy having sex."

Maxine's face turned a beautiful shade of pink at Antares's casual discussion of his sex life. She wasn't the type of girl to casually talk about such crass subjects such as one's personal sex life. Especially to someone she had only just met.

"Now I know that you don't know me, but if you did then you would know that I am a very honourable man, and that I would never do anything to disrespect my future wife. I know that there is absolutely no possible way that I will be able to remain celibate for the next five years, and I would never even dream of trying to remain so. Sure I could continue as I have for the last two years and sleep with any of my various partners, but now that everyone is aware of the fact that I am to be married, things have become a little bit more complicated. No more can I just waltz around the castle and sleep with whomever I want, not without causing certain people to talk. Which is something that I'd rather avoid if I could help it. The last thing I need for my reputation is for everyone to starting talking about how I'm being unfaithful to my future wife. So this is where you come into play. My proposition to you is this. In exchange for a completely sexual relationship with myself whenever and wherever I see fit, I will give you 10,000 Galleons a month."

"You want me to what?!" exclaimed Maxine loudly as she got to her feet.

"I want to pay you a lot of money for a lot of sex" said Antares with a completely straight face.

Antares sank back into his chair with a satisfied look on his face as Maxine began to pace back in forth in front of the fireplace. He really did enjoy how her face rapidly changed from one expression to the next, going from shock to outrage then to anger and back again to outrage. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination or not but he swore he even saw her smile on more than one occasion.

"You still haven't given me an answer Maxine" said Antares after several minutes without a response.

"Absolutely not!" shouted Maxine as she abruptly came to a stop.

"Come on Maxine, it's not like it'll mean anything. It'll just be a couple of good looking teenagers engaging in casual consensual sex from time to time. You don't have to love me. Hell I don't even care if you like me. I just need someone who knows how to be discrete, and I believe you're that type of person. 10,000 Galleons a month is a lot of money, especially if the arrangement is for the next 24 months."

"I don't need, nor want, your money Black. I'll pass on your "deal" thanks" she spat at him in disgust,

"Just think it about it would you," he said as he stood up, "No harm ever came from thinking things through".

With that Antares gave her one of his most sincere smiles as he made to make his way from the room.

"Why me Black?" she called out to him, "What made you decide to come to me when we've never even spoken before?"

Antares hand froze on the door handle as he heard Maxine called out to him from across the room.

"I've always had a thing for pretty Asians." he called out to her without turning around, the corners of his mouth turned up in avid amusement.

With that Antares opened the door and exited the secret library, leaving a very speechless and very confused Maxine Harrison behind him.


End file.
